VOICES OF RESISTANCE, ACTS OF OPPRESSION:

A CRITICAL STUDY ON COMMUNICATING RESISTANCE AGAINST

AN OPPRESSIVE ECOLOGICALLY RISKY PROJECT

LINUS VAN ORILLA PLATA

SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE

COLLEGE OF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION
UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES LOS BAOS
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE

DEGREE OF

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION

(Community Broadcasting)

APRIL 2012

This undergraduate research titled VOICES OF RESISTANCE, ACTS OF OPPRESSION: A

CRITICAL STUDY ON COMMUNICATING RESISTANCE AGAINST AN OPPRESSIVE
ECOLOGICALLY RISKY PROJECT, prepared and submitted by Linus Van O. Plata in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Bachelor of Science in Development
Communication (Community Broadcasting), is hereby accepted.

_________________________
MARK LESTER M. CHICO
Adviser

_________________________
Date

Accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree

Bachelor of Science in Development Communication
(Community Broadcasting)

_________________________
MA. TERESITA B. OSALLA
Chair

Department of Development Broadcasting and Telecommunication

College of Development Communication
University of the Philippines Los Baos
College, Laguna

_________________________
Date
2

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
As I write this, I was listening to the 1934 orchestral piece of Ralph Vaughan Williams
entitled Fantasia on Greensleeves. The first and last sections of this four-minute magnum opus
fittingly reflected what I felt at the moment various sounds of musical instruments blending in
harmony, pacing in a dramatic, slow, and escalating fashion, and bringing the listener to a trance, to a
state of reflection, to an experience of soulfulness, to a moment of emancipation. Emancipation it is
such a big word but I figure Im unworthily fortunate enough to have been through that state a
million times, not least of them when I was finally emancipated from the burden of following through
this research study. Chief of them of course is when the Good Lord emancipated me from the yoke of
spiritual slavery on the basis of His grace. Surely I had little and great moments of emancipation in
my pocket over the years, and so it has become a humble mission of mine to help others seek theirs.
Easier said than done, but I hope this research study which attempted to deconstruct oppression (the
archenemy of emancipation) and to reveal insights into how the oppressed could resist it would be a
good start.
Lord, how could I ever written even a single letter of this manuscript, much less conceive a
single thought out of the gazillions that crossed my mind pertinent to the study, without Your
steadfast love and mercy? Indeed apart from You, I can do nothing; the branch cannot bear fruit
without the Vine. Forgive me for among my countless iniquities and transgressions against You, this
research undertaking had a lot of times distracted me from seeking Your face and serving Your
kingdom. Still, Thou changest not. Your grace sustained and upheld me to the very end. May Your
glory manifest through this humble work, as it already does now. Soli Deo Gloria.
Sir Mark Lester Chico, my adviser for this research study, I couldnt have found a more
compassionate mentor than you. Forgive me for my inadequacies, and thank you for your adequacies.
Upon entering the college, you took me under your wings and taught me through your lifestyle the
principles of vision, excellence, creativity, professionalism, and greatness. At the same time, you have
been an impeccable UP ComBroadSoc adviser, a fellow brother in the organization and in the Lord, a
karaoke buddy, a fashion adviser, a critic, a confidant, a friend, and a Kuya a great one at that. And
why should I forget you as the business tycoon who loads my phone? (As I write this, I still owe
you 45 pesos.) A toast to one great man who graced my life.
Michelle Montiel, cmon, where shall I start? Im fully convinced youre heaven-sent. You
were the person whose heart the Lord had touched to rescue me on this research study, by shouldering
the task of transcribing my in-depth interviews and translating the exemplary quotes. Sorry for having
you put up with such colossal work. I hope by the time you read this citation I already have
compensated your great service rightfully. And remember that conversation on the phone? When I
was close to hitting rock bottom emotionally during the tough times of this ambitious research? You
gave me those encouraging words right when I needed them. I wish I could be a noble friend like you.
Thanks for the rest of the Escapaders too for the awesome friendship: Maila Ani, Minmin Ang,
Janjan Ciar, Sandra Cutay, and Fernando Lit.

Brothers and sisters in the UP Community Broadcasters Society, let me get straight to the
point: You are the best thing that happened in my college life. The gift too good to be true, the
privilege to become the thinker, leader, and communicator that I am today, the other family that
regarded me as an elder brother you have trusted, looked up to, and also horsed around. What a
marvelous journey we have traveled together as we transformed the organization from an underdog
group to an institution that is authentically Naiiba, Nag-iisa, Nangunguna by the grace of God.
Decades from now we would look back to this moment when the world stood in awe of the
organization that showed wonders. As I leave you, may you uphold and nurture the cultures of
excellence, fellowship, and service we have enjoyed this year. Above all, the culture of God which
made it all possible in the first place. Special thanks to Ronalyn Franca for suggesting me the Sitio
Basi creek issue as the case study for this research.
Brothers and sisters in the Rivers Edge Ministries, my beloved local church, I thank you for
understanding and praying for me on this research endeavor. There were times when I could feel in
my spirit your intercessions for me. I am excited to enjoy fellowship with you again and sing praises
to the Lord every Sunday and beyond the time of our earthly pilgrimage. You have been a spiritual
family that nurtured my walk with our Great and Awesome God. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so.
Tito Placido Katimbang, Tita Lilia Katimbang, and Tito Zaldy Fe, my research participants in
this study, I would forever treasure the trust and time you have given me during the interviews. I
claim your release from jail, Tito Placido and Tito Zaldy. I can only pray that the lot of the oppressed
like yours would remain in my consciousness and that He would grant me the commitment to do
something about it. I thank God when I learned about your faith in Him. Behold, the Lord works
righteousness for those who are oppressed, as the heart of the oppressor today surely beats from hell.
To a dear professor who preferred not be named here, thank you for the perspicacious
feedback you gave upon reading the manuscript of this study. You are such a woman of character and
grace worthy of emulation, a devoted servant of the Most High. More spiritual talks to come.
Dr. Ilhan Kucukaydin of the Penn State Harrisburg, Pennsylvania State University, thank you
for allowing me to adopt your theoretical framework in your study on counter-learning under
oppression (CLUO) in mine. Through your study, you have actually served as a consultant in spirit.
Team CHKO Donnabel Elpedes, Maicah Pamfilo, Joyce Camille Reyes, and Zarah Moredo
my co-advisees in this research course, thank you for making me feel I wasnt alone in this process.
Renzo Guinto, an epitome of excellence and a vivacious friend, thanks for helping me work
up a creative title for this study. May everything both of us do be unto His glory alone.
Di (Sandy), Mi (Evelyn), Ian (younger brother), Nanay Lily (grandmother), and the rest of
the Plata, Orilla, Matsushita, and Tomizawa family: I love you. Could I not have said it better? I
wouldnt be Linus Plata without all the sacrifices, patience, sustenance, encouragement, and love you
have demonstrated me. The Lord continually use our families for the kingdom.
Consummatum Est.
4

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE

CHAPTER
Title Page
Acceptance Sheet
Acknowledgment
Table of Contents
Abstract
I.

II.

III.

IV.

INTRODUCTION
Background Information
Problem Statement
Research Questions
Research Objectives
Limitations of the Study
Assumptions of the Study
Theoretical Framework
Definition of Terms
Significance of the Study

1
5
8
8
9
9
10
10
14

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Critical Constructivism
Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School
Herbert Marcuse
Narrative Analysis
The Sitio Basi Creek Issue and the Katimbang-Fe Case
Pertinent Studies on Oppression
Literature on Communicating Resistance

15
16
18
19
21
25
27

METHODOLOGY
The Qualitative Paradigm
Narrative Analysis
Data Collection and Analysis
Data Gathering
Criteria for the Narrative Research

36
41
41
45
46

RESEARCH FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

Through the Lens of the Research Instrument
Oppression

47
50
5

Oppression breeds from an oppressors personal agenda

Attributes of oppression emerge to sustain the
oppressive phenomena
Oppression casts in its phenomenon a powerful
oppressor and a marginalized oppressed
Oppression exerts force to dominate the
oppressed
Oppression silences the oppressed
Oppression entails the exploitation of human and
financial resources
Oppression mars the image of a community
Oppression deprives the oppressed of their basic rights
Oppression persists to accomplish its end
Communicating Resistance
How Resistance is Communicated
Communicating resistance begins with organizing
community meetings within the oppressed group to
discuss the oppressive issue
Communicating resistance then involves sending
letters to concerned officials and agencies, and
requesting an appropriate agency to sit as a
mediating body between the oppressor and the
oppressed
Communicating resistance proceeds on making the
oppressive issue known to the public by putting up
a poster
Communicating resistance psychologically requires the
oppressed to interpret and construct their
experiences in a way that makes them refuse to
submit to oppression
Why Resistance is Communicated
Communicating resistance is chiefly driven by
practicality
Communicating resistance considers the welfare of
society
Communicating resistance takes into account
ecological implications
Communicating resistance is justified on moral
grounds

50
58
58
61
62
64
66
69
72
75
75

75

77

80

82
90
90
91
92
93

V.

SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary
Conclusions and Implications
Recommendations

95
102
103

BIBLIOGRAPHY

105

APPENDICES
Appendix A: Ethics Approval
Appendix B: Transcriptions

120
121

LIST OF FIGURES
FIGURE NO.
1

TITLE
Dynamics of communicating resistance against an
oppressive ecologically risky project

PAGE

101

ABSTRACT

PLATA, LINUS VAN O. University of the Philippines Los Baos. April 2012. Voices
of Resistance, Acts of Oppression: A Critical Study on Communicating Resistance
against an Oppressive Ecologically Risky Project.
Adviser: Mark Lester M. Chico

This qualitative critical study employed narrative analysis to explore the dynamics of
communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically
risky project. Specifically, the study (1) described how these people interpret oppression; (2)
examined how they communicate their resistance against the oppressive ecologically risky
project; and (3) analyzed why they choose to communicate resistance despite the risks
involved.

The combination of critical constructivism and Herbert Marcuses critical theory

formed as the theoretical framework of the study. The dynamics of communicating resistance
by the poor and marginalized was analyzed using critical constructivism, while the
Marcusian critical theory was applied to study on a larger scale the socio-political context in
which they experience the oppression and how this context has affected them. Transcripts of
semi-structured and in-depth interviews with three research participants from a poor
community in a Philippine municipality were subjected to the procedures of narrative
analysis adapted from Bernard and Ryan (2010). Coding was processed with the aid of a
qualitative research software.

Based on the research participants narratives, an oppressive act always has a raison
d'tre which serves the interest of the dominant group in an unjust society. It also possesses
several attributes aimed to sustain the oppressive process. These attributes depict that
oppression (1) casts in its phenomenon a powerful oppressor and a marginalized oppressed;
(2) exerts force to dominate the oppressed; (3) silences the oppressed; (4) entails the

exploitation of human and financial resources; (5) mars the image of a community; (6)
deprives the oppressed of their basic rights; and (7) persists to accomplish its end.
Furthermore, communicating nonviolent resistance starts with more acceptable forms
of opposition such as organizing community meetings to discuss the oppressive issue,
sending letters to concerned officials and agencies, and requesting an appropriate agency to
sit as a mediating body between the oppressor and the oppressed. If such forms failed,
resistance could resort to bolder, more radical ones like making the oppressive issue known
to the public by putting up a poster. Meanwhile, communicating resistance psychologically
requires the oppressed to interpret and construct their experiences in a way that makes them
refuse to submit to oppression.

The narratives also revealed that communicating resistance against oppressive acts is
justified on practical, social, ecological, and moral grounds.

The study suggests future research into the dynamics of communicating resistance
against oppression among the poor and marginalized who live in extreme rural and urban
areas and do not have a militant background. Also recommended is an exploration into how
oppressors themselves utilize communication to counter the resistance, hence maintaining the
oppressive phenomena.

Key Words: critical study, narrative analysis, oppression, resistance, risky project
10

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

This chapter presents an overview of a research study exploring the dynamics of

communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically
risky project. The critical study focuses on how these people interpret oppression, how they
communicate their resistance against the oppressive ecologically risky project, and why they
choose to communicate resistance despite the risks involved. To protect the identity of the
research participants and mitigate the risks related to the study on the part of the researcher,
some names of people, places, and the school involved in the case study of this research
depicted herein are fictitious, as would be indicated. No association with any real person,
places, or school is intended or should be inferred. Further, specifically citing news articles
that would reveal, directly or indirectly, the said protected identities is withheld. The chapter
constitutes background information, purpose of the study, problem statement, research
questions, research objectives, and theoretical framework.

Background Information

So I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears
of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was
power; but they had no comforter. Wherefore I praised the dead which are already dead more than
the living which are yet alive. Yea, better is he than both they, which hath not yet been, who hath not
seen the evil work that is done under the sun.
Solomon of Ancient Israel
(Ecclesiastes 4:1 3, King James Version)

It was the sage king in Jerusalem who decried the above litany, and he lived in the
10th century BC (Finkelstein and Silberman, 2006). After three millennia, the sting and
manifestation of oppression have only persisted in and circumscribed human life.
1

Oppression, or the unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power (Merriam-Webster, 2011),

not only has prevailed over time nor has it been confined to the tyrannical practice of a
dominant group, but has also succeeded in becoming a multifaceted phenomenon by taking
on several forms such as sexism, racism, classism, and colonialism (Head, n.d.). For Young
(2004), oppression has worn five faces: exploitation (the use of human labor for profit at the
workers expense); marginalization (the exclusion of a social group); powerlessness (the
domination of the powerless by a ruling class); cultural imperialism (the establishment of the
culture of the ruling class as the norm); and violence (the infliction of physical harm and
damage). Nevertheless, damage inflicted by oppression is not limited to the physical. The
individuals sense of practicality and rationality could also be injured, and this happens when
oppression facilitates self-deception, an impaired capacity for rational deliberation, and the
weakening of the human will (Hay, 2011).

For the diversity of its forms and manifestations affecting human life, oppression
might come across as a phenomenon engaged in the political, social, economic, cultural, and
psychological aspects of the life of an individual or a group, therefore making the dynamics
of these aspects all the more complex and subtle to be characterized. Considering this
engagement, oppression its forms and manifestations, and the avenues through which it
permeates could only be expected to evolve as the dynamics of the said aspects change in
the context of space and time. Nonetheless, while face of oppression changes, its very nature
is immutable. Prilleltensky and Gonick (1996) asserted that even as both postindustrial and
emerging states face economic, cultural, and political changes, the constant of oppression
remains. That people who are marginalized economically and culturally continue to bear
untold degrees of suffering (ibid.). Consequently, from a moral lens,
Prilleltensky and Gonick call fellow social scientists to serve the needs of the oppressed.
They call them to do something about it.

And as if only parties external to oppressive phenomena which from the Marxist
perspective constitute the petit bourgeoisie or the middle social class possess the agency to
address, if not, challenge and resist it, history and studies have shown the capacity and power

of the oppressed themselves to do the same (Burgos-Debray, 1984; Feitlowitz, 1998; Green,
1994; Knudson 1997; Kucukaydin, 2008; Thalhammer, 2001). In particular, their capacity
and power for nonviolent resistance against oppression with emphasis on its communicative
component, considering that communication is central to many of the methods of nonviolent
action (Martin, 1996).

On that note is where I shall give foretaste to the case of this study.

It happened one night in September 2011 when the dusk had already set in. I tried to
hide my uneasiness as I was looking for my student ID in my back pack. Dusk is the days
most blessed hour; it is the time when the spirits of darkness drift slowly down the bright
domain, F. Sionil Jose (1984) writes of the very first account of what was to become the
epic narrative of the Rosales Saga. While the dusk that September night signalled what was
to become a narrative of the poor and marginalized in the town of La Merced the retelling
of which (through this study) I regarded a blessed, risky, and emancipatory experience it
also threatened to ruin this very mission of retelling. The face of 61-year-old Socorro Lim
(not her real name) was covered in darkness as she awaited my ID; nevertheless, I knew she
was smiling. But her smile only added to the several surreal things already present there, like
the only distinct thing I could see from her face, which is the lens of her eyeglasses glaring
the moonlight. I could not recall if I took offense at being asked for my ID, which could only
mean one thing I was being suspected as a spy sent by the municipal mayor.

The two of us stood close each other between the narrow unpaved road of Sitio Basi
in Barangay Tanikala in La Merced, Camagay Province (not the places real names), and her
house. Or was it a house? Or was there a house? A while ago, the already smiling Socorro
merely came out from sheer darkness behind a front yard after her daughter went in there to
tell her a University of the Philippines (UP) student would like to ask her a few questions for
his research study.

By the time she asked for my ID, we had already struck a long conversation. She had
raised two important points one was a revelation, the other a confirmation. The revelation
was that her daughter, Patsy, together with Krisha Borja, (not their real names) both of whom
were UP students, disappeared in a province in Central Luzon on June 2006, as affirmed by
an independent media organization (2006). They were activists. The confirmation was that
Chrysalis Academy (not its real name) a school which according to a national daily (2011)
is owned by the family of state-run institution CMBPs (not its real name) former chairperson
Sixto Gorospe (not his real name) was expanding its area. This involves the construction of
a box culvert (i.e. a drain to channel water) that would cover Sitio Basis creek along which
some residents lived. A community newspaper in La Merced (2011) reports that the people
of Sitio Basi opposed this particular project because they believed covering the creek would
aggravate flooding, an ecological risk affecting 150 families in the area. This claim was then
supported by the local office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR) (ibid.). However, Chrysalis Administrative Officer-in-Charge Selina Alcachupas
(not her real name) denied that there is an ongoing construction conducted by the school in
the first place (ibid.).

Socorro recounted, as corroborated by the community newspaper in La Merced

(2011) and the national daily (2011), that the two people who led the opposition towards the
end of 2010 Placido Katimbang, 43, and Zaldy Fe, 31 were arrested on January 4, 2011
from a buy-and-bust operation conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP) of La
Merced due to drug trafficking charges. The community newspaper reports that Linda,
among the family and supporters of Katimbang and Fe, demanded the release of the two and
claimed the charges filed were fabricated and politically motivated. They believed their
active participation in the protest was the true motive behind their custody (ibid.).

The community newspaper in La Merced (2011) adds that Katimbangs wife, Lilia,
43, was also arrested due to alarm and scandal and obstruction of justice she allegedly
committed during the two mens apprehension. In my later interviews with Lilia, Placido,
and Zaldy, I would learn more about this conflict one whose nature is not merely criminal
4

but, as it unfolded, has taken on political, social, psychological, ideological, economic,

cultural, and communicative facets as well. This is an unfolding story of conflict. This is an
emerging story of oppression which I have always hoped would culminate in an act of
emancipation. This is a story on the voices of resistance and the acts of oppression.

As to how and why Sitio Basi residents communicate their resistance against an
oppressive ecologically risky project involving the creek, their lives, and the structures and
agents that fuel the oppression is an area that strikes a particular interest to me as a
communication researcher. As to how and why communication is being used for
emancipation by exploring the Sitio Basi case could inform the theory and practice of
development communication in particular which puts premium on the empowerment of
people.

I rummaged through my back pack for the ID in vain. Later I would remember that I
borrowed an undergraduate thesis from the college reading room, and in return, I had handed
over to the staff-in-charge the very thing I was looking for. So oblivious of me indeed, but
not so uncreative at least. I showed Socorro what I figured a better ID to prove my
innocence.

That was the book on which the litany against oppression by the wise Israeli king was
written and I could only smile back at the old woman.

Problem Statement

Multitudes who are socially and politically oppressed by a dominant cultural and
political system fear such systems inhumane tactics, strict cultural norms, and values that
aim to ensure social control and to silence the dissidents (Kucukaydin, 2008). Yet
Kucukaydin adds that some dare to challenge this oppressive and repressive system, as
though they are not aware of the repercussions and the low chance of success in doing so.

One noted example in the recent years which exemplifies this disregard for the cost of
denouncing an oppressive structure (a perceived one at least) is British African social rights
activist Toyin Agbetu, who made a commotion in a service in 2007 marking the 200 years of
the slave trade abolition (BBC, 2007). To the shock of the previously solemn congregation,
Agbetu rushed into the front of the altar and demanded formal apology from Queen Elizabeth
II and the then Prime Minister Tony Blair for the havoc slavery had wreaked on the African
race. Reporting the incident for the Guardian, Smith (2007) saw Agbetu pointing at the
Queen and cried, You, the Queen, should be ashamed!

Likewise, in the local context, Lilia Katimbang was shouting at the top of her lungs as
she called Socorro for help when her husband was being arrested. She also rebuked outright
the civilian-clothed police officers for copping Placido without an arrest warrant. But unlike
Agbetu who must have felt some sense of gratitude for burning at the stake became a thing of
the past in Britain, the community newspaper in La Merced (2011) reports that the
confrontational Lilia consequently was also arrested and jailed for three days for alarm and
scandal and obstruction of justice.

Lilia merely represented the Sitio Basi residents who, despite the constraints laid by
the dominant system, chose to communicate non-violently their protest against what they
interpret as unjust. In 2010, these residents communicated their resistance against Chrysalis
Academys construction of the box culvert on top of Sitio Basi creek an ecologically risky
project they deem oppressive.

We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the
oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed, writes Martin Luther King, Jr. (1963),
leader of the Civil Rights movement, in a letter from a Birmingham Jail. Demanding this
freedom by challenging the oppressive system takes several forms from active, militant,
and collective ones to inconspicuous, peaceful, and individual ways of resistance. Yet
Kucukaydin (2008) reminds that any opposition is not immune to the responses of cultural
and political cruelty. Considering this, why do some of the poor and marginalized still choose
6

to communicate their resistance in the context of this study, the nonviolent type against
oppression despite the risks involved? What factors enable them to adopt an anti-oppressive
mindset? What makes them choose and do as de Quiros (2011) redefines heroism the
right thing despite the alternative being perfectly understandable? Moreover, how do they
communicate such resistance? To begin with, how do they understand and interpret
oppressive structures and practices? Kucukaydin (2008) could only say what the literature
reveals: we lack knowledge of these people as to understand and explain their acts of
resistance. Thalhammer (2001) corroborates:

We marvel at those who publicly challenge dictatorships and

other repressive regimes, but we rarely understand the altruistic
political actions of the individuals who initiate organizations or
campaigns that plant the seeds for influential social movements
(p. 493).

In the Philippine context, understanding from a critical perspective the dynamics of

communicating nonviolent resistance by poor and marginalized Filipinos, among whom are
Placido and Lilia Katimbang, and Zaldy Fe, against oppressive structures and practices is an
area not much explored. Generally, in peace studies, communication is relatively not given
much attention (Roach, 1993, as cited in Martin, 1996) and this relative disregard for
communication is also reflected in nonviolence literature (Martin, 1996). On the other hand,
communication literature rarely covers nonviolence, particularly the role of communication
technology in nonviolent resistance (ibid.).

Martin (1996) asserts, Although researchers into communication have developed

many sophisticated and insightful perspectives and theories, few of them have been applied
to the category of nonviolent action. Therefore, an analysis is necessary to examine the
emancipatory acts of nonviolent struggle especially by the poor and marginalized in the
context of communication, and inform critical, sociological, political, development
communication, governance, and policy theories and practices in the Philippines, the country
comprising 45 percent of its people (or around 9.1 million families) who consider themselves
poor (Social Weather Stations, 2012).
7

Research Questions

This critical study was propelled by the general question: What is the dynamics of
communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically
risky project?

Specifically, the study was guided by the following research questions:

1. How do Sitio Basi residents interpret oppression in the oppressive ecologically risky
project?
2. How do they communicate their resistance against the project?
3. Why do they communicate their resistance despite the risks involved?

Research Objectives

Drawing from the aforementioned general question, the research study primarily
sought to explore the dynamics of communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized
against an oppressive ecologically risky project.

It also aimed to achieve three specific objectives:

1. Describe how Sitio Basi residents interpret oppression in the oppressive ecologically
risky project;
2. Examine how they communicate their resistance against the project; and
3. Analyze why they choose to communicate such resistance despite the risks involved.

Limitations of the Study

1. Three adult peoples oppressive experiences were analyzed within a particular sociopolitical milieu, which is Sitio Basi in La Merced, the Philippines; consequently,
findings of this study might not apply to other age groups, locations, time, and
contexts.

2. Community members who did not participate actively or at all in the resistance in the
creek issue were not interviewed to hear primarily the reasons for such actions.

3. Two of the three research participants in the study were interviewed separately inside
the police station where they were detained, and at some points of the interview
where a woman police officer was seated nearby, the participants might have felt
awkward and discouraged from disclosing their narratives more comfortably or
accurately. This could have affected the sense of transparency between the research
participants and me in the in-depth interviews.

Assumptions of the Study

1. Oppressive forces exist in the Sitio Basi creek issue where the poor and marginalized
are involved. This draws from a more profound assumption that in societies where the
dominant group and culture prevail, like the one in which Sitio Basi is situated, these
poor and marginalized are vulnerable to the oppressive agenda.

2. To be able to study how and why poor and marginalized people like the Sitio Basi
residents communicate their resistance against oppression, it is important to examine
the dynamics of oppression in its socio-economic context.

3. Communicating resistance against an oppressive phenomenon is socio-politically

constructed.

Theoretical Framework

In his book Against Method, philosopher of science Paul Feyerabend (1993) claims
that methodological monism the sufficiency of a single methodology for scientific progress
actually impairs scientific progress itself. That one approach is not enough brings him to
suggest eclectic methods in producing scientific knowledge. Adhering to Feyerabends idea,
I employed an eclectic approach in this study, adopting Kucukaydins (2008) in his study of
counter-learning under oppression: critical constructivism coupled with Frankfurt Schoolbased critical social theory, specifically Herbert Marcuses critical theory, to explore the
dynamics of communicating resistance by Sitio Basi residents against an oppressive
ecologically risky project. The combination of these two theoretical lenses allowed for an
encompassing and appropriate theoretical framework, which in turn provided me both micro
and macro levels of analysis (Brookfield, 2000b; Dougiamas, 1998; Matthews, 2000; Spicer
& Fleming, 2001, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008). The dynamics of communicating resistance
by the poor and marginalized was analyzed using critical constructivism, while the
Marcusian critical theory was applied to study on a larger scale the socio-political context in
which they experience the oppression and how this context has affected them.

Definition of Terms

Despite the research study being qualitative in nature and methodology, below are
some important terms used frequently throughout the study which need defining at this point
for greater understanding and to reduce false assumptions. Some of them are discussed at
length in the next chapters.

1. Communication is the transmission or exchange of meanings and ideas between

individuals through a common system of symbols (Craig, 2000; Encyclopdia
10

Britannica, 2012). Communicating resistance among Sitio Basi residents, on the other
hand, means transmitting to the oppressor the message of their opposition against the
construction of a building or box culvert on top of Sitio Basi creek, and the other
oppressive experiences the residents were put through as a consequence of such
protest.

2. Resistance is an act that challenges power for its oppression and domination
(Sorensen, 2008).

3. Nonviolent resistance is protesting oppression, domination and any other forms of

injustice without resorting to physical force (Dudouet, 2008).

4. Ecological risk is similar to environmental risk which is the actual or potential

threat of adverse effects on living organisms and environment by effluents, emissions,
wastes, resource depletion, etc., arising out of an organization's activities
(BusinessDictionary.com, 2012). In the case of Sitio Basi, the ecological risk entails
resource depletion in the sense that the construction by Chrysalis Academy of a
building on top of Sitio Basi creek covers the body of water and therefore impedes its
natural ecological state and processes. Quite different from the term environment,
ecology connotes normative or evaluative issues and regards nature as an interacting
system involving humans (Hall, 2010).

5. Poor is someone who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or

material possessions (Encyclopdia Britannica, 2012). The poor is said to be lacking
the means to meet their basic needs, which could be narrowly defined as those
necessary for survival or as generally as those reflecting the prevailing standard of
living in the community (ibid.).

11

6. Marginalized is the victim in the complex and disputatious process by means of

which certain people and ideas are privileged over others at any given time (Tucker,
1990).

7. Oppression refers to institutionalized collective and individual modes of behavior

through which one group attempts to dominate and control another in order to secure
political, economic, and/or social-psychological advantage" (as cited in Mar'i, 1988,
p. 6).

8. Critical constructivism is a theory of learning which leads to an understanding of

the way power works at both macro (deep structural) and micro (particularistic) levels
to shape our understandings of the world and our role in it (Kincheloe, 1997, p. 58).

9. Critical theory in a narrow sense refers to generations of German philosophers and

social theorists in the Frankfurt School, a Western European Marxist tradition
(Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2005). These scholars assert that a critical
theory, as against the traditional one which is geared towards merely understanding or
explaining society, seeks to critique and change it by advocating peoples
emancipation, by liberat[ing] human beings from the circumstances that enslave
them (Horkheimer 1982, p. 244, as cited in ibid.).

10. Discourse generally refers to written or spoken communication or debate (Oxford

Dictionaries, 2012). Lessa (2006) sums up French social theorist Michel Foucaults
definition of discourse as systems of thoughts composed of ideas, attitudes, courses
of action, beliefs and practices that systematically construct the subjects and the
worlds of which they speak. According to Lessa, Foucault acknowledges that
discourses play roles in wider social processes of legitimating and power,
emphasizing the construction of current truths, how they are maintained and what
power relations they carry with them. Foucault (1972) asserts that discourse is

12

controlled by what could be said (objects), where and how one could speak (ritual),
and who could speak (the privileged).

11. Ideology refers to a mental framework the languages, the concepts, categories,
imagery of thought, and the systems of representation which different classes and
social groups deploy in order to make sense of, define, figure out, and render
intelligible the way society works (Hall, 1996, p. 26, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008).
Critical theorists define ideology from a Marxist lens, which regards it as a twisting
of reality but also acknowledges its role in communication (Kucukaydin, 2008).

12. Cultural hegemony is the philosophical and sociological theory of Italian Marxist
thinker Antonio Gramsci describing the dominance of one social class over others,
like the bourgeois hegemony (Chandler, 2000). Chandler explains that cultural
hegemony represents not only political and economic control, but also the ability of
the dominant class to project its own way of seeing the world so that those who are
subordinated by it accept it as 'common sense' and 'natural'.

13. Oppressed could mean two things in this study depending on the context. Taking
from Maris (1988) definition of oppression, it could refer to those who are
dominated and controlled by a group for the latters political, economic, or sociopsychological benefit. It could also mean those who have been in the same situation
but rather chose to resist and challenge the oppressing group.

14. Oppressor could then refer to those who seek to dominate and control the oppressed
for their advantage. The findings generated from this study would reveal who were
the oppressor and the oppressed in the Sitio Basi creek issue.

13

Significance of the Study

It was previously mentioned that in the Philippine context, understanding from a

critical perspective the dynamics of communicating nonviolent resistance by poor and
marginalized Filipinos, among whom are Placido and Lilia Katimbang, and Zaldy Fe, against
oppressive structures and practices is an area not much explored (Roach, 1993 &Martin,
1996). Therefore, an analysis is necessary to examine the emancipatory acts of nonviolent
struggle especially by the poor and marginalized in the context of communication, and
inform critical, sociological, political, development communication, governance, and policy
theories and practices in the Philippines

Not only would the academic circle benefit from the findings of this study, but most
especially also the two segments of the oppressed in the Philippines and across societies and
regimes on the planet: those who have remained silent having considered the cost of
resistance in any form, who could discover that it is possible to see the world in a critical
lens, that it is possible to identify and deconstruct the dominant structure by which they are
subjugated, that it is possible to challenge this prevailing and imbibed structure which could
lead to the much-hoped emancipation.

And those who have already taken the so-called narrow road having communicated
their voice and condemned the sin-begotten oppression, whose flames of resistance could be
further stoked by the flickering candle light that this study had sought to become.

14

CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter presents a review of the literature relevant to the four major areas
informing this study: (1) critical constructivism; (2) critical theory of the Frankfurt School,
specifically Herbert Marcuses critical theory; (3) narrative analysis; (4) the oppressive
ecologically risky project in Sitio Basi and the Katimbang-Fe case; (5) related studies on
oppression; and (6) literature on communicating resistance against oppression.

Critical Constructivism

Critical constructivism is founded on the theory of constructivism, which posits that

no truly objective way of seeing exists. Nothing exists before consciousness shapes it into
something we can perceive (Kincheloe, 2005, p. 8). Kincheloe also says that the apparent
objective reality of an individual is merely a product of what his or her mind constructs, a
result of what he or she is used to seeing. Hence, what is seen in the physical world is
nothing but creations of our measuring and categorizing mind (ibid.). The construction of
knowledge and meaning is a dynamic process in which people invariably structure and
restructure their experiences to give meaning to[the] events and ideas in which they find
themselves caught up (Candy, 1989, p. 254, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008). Constructivism
as an epistemology has the following premises (Scientific Reasoning Research Institute,
2008):

1. Knowledge is constructed, not transmitted;

2. Prior knowledge impacts the learning process;
3. Initial understanding is local, not global; and
4. Building useful knowledge structures requires effortful and purposeful activity.
15

Kucukaydin (2008) raises however that while cognitivist and social constructivism
two popular branches of the constructivist theory consider the social context in the
construction of knowledge and meaning, these two paradigms do not give much emphasis on
the socio-political context and its role on the phenomenon being studied. To capture this
context in the study, critical constructivism is needed for it reveals the role of dominant
ideology and its power structure in the knowledge and meaning construction (ibid.).
According to Kincheloe (1997, p. 58), critical constructivism leads to an understanding of
the way power works at both macro (deep structural) and micro (particularistic) levels to
shape our understandings of the world and our role in it.

Through it, one can discover how several aspects of his or her life such as political,
religious, gender, and racial beliefs had been shaped by cultures and subcultures which are
dominant (Kincheloe, 2005).

Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School

A principal aim of studying and learning to think, read, write, and act theoretically is to develop the
ability to recognize, understand, explain, account for, and justify the theories that guide and sustain
us throughout our everyday lives. Likewise, a principal aim of studying and learning to think, read,
write, and act critically is to develop the ability to recognize, understand, explain, account for, and
justify the kinds of judgements, the ways in which we make judgements, and the standards and
criteria we use in making judgements throughout everyday life.
Bob Nowlan, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (2001)

Critical theory in a narrow sense refers to generations of German philosophers and

social theorists in the Frankfurt School, a Western European Marxist tradition (Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2005). These scholars assert that a critical theory, as against
the traditional one which is geared towards merely understanding or explaining society, seeks
to critique and change it by advocating peoples emancipation, by liberat[ing] human beings
from the circumstances that enslave them (Horkheimer 1982, p. 244, as cited in ibid.).

16

Because critical theory intends to study and transform all oppressive conditions, several
critical theories in a broader sense have emerged. Still, these theories continue to provide
descriptive and normative foundations for social inquiry that seek to challenge oppression
and induce emancipation (ibid.).

Betrayed at modernity, the Western civilization (capitalism in particular), and

reasons alleged unfulfilled promises of emancipation and liberation, the Frankfurt School
pursued its own theoretical framework and made claims that challenge traditional
institutions. One of these claims is that knowledge has been historically and ideologically
constructed to favor dominant groups (Kucukaydin, 2008).

But emancipation of the oppressed is possible, according to Freire (1972, as cited in

ibid.), as they can change oppressive situations into non-oppressive ones for and by
themselves. In Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970, p. 47), a classic on critical pedagogy,
Freire writes:

The oppressed, having internalized the image of the oppressor

and adopted his guidelines, are fearful of freedom. Freedom
would require them to eject this image and replace it with
autonomy and responsibility. Freedom is acquired by conquest,
not by gift. It must be pursued constantly and responsibly.
Freedom is not an ideal located outside of man; nor is it an idea
which becomes myth. It is rather the indispensable condition
for the quest for human completion.

Through praxis, which Freire (1970, p. 57) defines as reflection and action upon the
world in order to transform it or simply theory-based action, the oppressed can rise from the
oppression and overcome it; the oppressed can no longer be prey to its force.

While Marxist ideology relates such liberation to class consciousness and struggles, a
perspective that neglects individuality and subjectivity, the Frankfurt School was more
concerned with human potential (Kucukaydin, 2008). Its proponents discredited the Marxist
17

emphasis on political economy (alienated labor) as the determinant of oppression and instead
centered on how subjectivity was constituted and how the spheres of culture and everyday
life represented a new terrain of domination (Giroux, 2001, p. 11). Critical theory, according
to Frankfurt Schools Herbert Marcuse, is to define the highest human potentialities and to
criticize society in terms of whether it furthers the development and realization of these
potentialities, or their constriction and repression (Kellner, 2001, p. 122). Knowing this,
Marcuses critical theory could be used to analyze how society nurtures or vultures the
individual potential. In the context of Sitio Basi, this theory was used as a lens to examine
how society affects the potential of its residents the potential to succeed in the venture of
their choosing, to live a decent, free, and just life, and to resist structures and practices that
oppress them.

Herbert Marcuse

German Jewish philosopher, sociologist, and political theorist Herbert Marcuse

forwards determinants of oppression unique to other members of the Frankfurt School
social controls which bring forth a one-dimensional [wo]man and a society without
opposition (Kucukaydin, 2008). Marcuse (1964) argues that dominant values in what he
called the advanced industrial society encroach on the individuals most private space (the
inner dimension of the mind and the self) through popular platforms like mass media, culture,
and advertising. He describes this space as the center of the inner dimension of the mind in
which opposition to the status quo can take root (ibid., p. 10). However, if this inner
dimension is being intruded, the individual can imbibe the dominant values which as a result
can make him or her one-dimensional. An example of a social control according to
Marcuse which induces the one-dimensionality of an individual is consumerism. He argues
that the individual is depersonalized and becomes a part of the industrial and consumer
machine. Then advertising would fuel consumerism, deluding the masses that happiness
could be bought a notion psychologically and socially damaging.

18

Still, Marcuse (1964) assures that not everyones inner dimensions fall prey to
dominant power and that there are ways for the oppressed to self-emancipate. Such ways can
be emotional, intellectual, and linguistic disengagement from the dominant system. This
engagement can be revolutionary because to repossess the intruded inner dimension of the
mind, it is necessary for adults to experience a fundamental estrangement from commonly
accepted ways of thinking and feeling (Brookfield, 2005, p. 196, as cited in Kucukaydin,
2008). Marcuse (1964) calls it the Great Refusal. In response to consumerism for instance,
this could take the form of anti-consumerism which abnegates unnecessary consumption,
work, waste, etc.

Narrative Analysis

Narrative is present in myth, legend, fable, tale, novella, epic, history, tragedy, drama, comedy,
mime, painting (think of Carpaccio's Saint Ursula), stained glass windows, cinema, comics, news
items, conversations. Moreover, under this almost infinite diversity of forms, narrative is present in
every age, in every place, in every society; it begins with the very history of mankind and there
nowhere is nor has been a people without narrative. All classes, all human groups, have their
narrativesnarrative is international, transhistorical, transcultural:
It is simply there, like life itself.
Barthes (1977, as cited in Hazel, 2007, p. 1)

People make sense of their experience usually in narrative form (Bruner, 1990; Gee,
1985; Mishler, 1986; as cited in Riessman, 1994). Riessman argues that because the narrative
is an important structure for the production of meaning, it must be preserved, not fractured,
by investigators, who must respect respondents ways of constructing meaning and analyze
how it is accomplished (p. 4). Narrative analysis, on the other hand, is defined by Daiute
and Lightfoot (2004) as a mode of inquiry based in narrative as a root metaphor, a genre,
and discourse (p. x). Cortazzi (1993) simply sees it as opening a window on the mind (p.
2). Narratives as genres in particular are ways established by culture to organize and
experience knowledge (ibid.). For instance, some critical researchers view narrative as a
coherent story line organized implicitly by some dominant force to characterize the values,
19

practices, and controls inherent in groups determining who the heroes are, what life should be
like, and what should be heralded or hidden (ibid., p. x).

Narrative analysis uses narrative materials such as stories and narration to address the
research question (Lieblich et al., 1998 & Kucukaydin, 2008). The narrative researcher
analyzes the narration in its different aspects such as story flow, and information which are
included, excluded, and emphasized (Rosenwald & Ochberg, 1992, as cited in Kucukaydin,
2008).

Bernard and Ryan (2010) identify four traditions of narrative analysis in the social
sciences: sociolinguistics, hermeneutics, phenomenology, and grounded theory. Focusing on
the third which would be adopted in the study, the phenomenological tradition uses personal
narratives as windows into the lived experience of the narrators and [tries] to achieve
empathic understanding of that experience (p. 248). The focus is not merely on the story
itself but on the experience of the individual narrating the story.

Bernard and Ryan (2010) define phenomenology as a branch of philosophy that looks
into direct experience of phenomena to be able to identify their essences or the things that
constitute them. It was the work of Edmund Husserl (1964 [1907], 1989 [1913], as cited in
Bernard & Ryan, 2010) which introduced phenomenology into the social sciences. Husserl
contends that the procedures used for analyzing physical phenomena do not fit those for
studying human thinking and behavior. Without rejecting positivism, he pushes for an
approach that acknowledges the data obtained by the senses but is also suitable for
understanding how people experience the world (Spiegelberg, 1980). This requires setting
aside or bracketing biases for the researcher to avoid adopting his or her own cultural lens in
studying other peoples experiences and instead to understand these experiences from the
lens of these very people (Creswell, 1998; Giorgi, 1986, McNamara, 2005; Moustakas, 1994;
as cited in Bernard & Ryan, 2010).

20

The essence or the essentials of the phenomenon being studied through narrative
analysis are also known as themes in qualitative research. Anthropologist Morris Opler
(1945, as cited in Bernard & Ryan, 2010) puts importance on identifying themes in the study
of cultures. He gives a clear understanding of themes in the following statement:

In every culture are found a limited number of dynamic

affirmations, called themes, which control behavior or
stimulate activity. The activities, prohibitions of activities, or
references which result from the acceptance of a theme are its
expressions... The expressions of a theme, of course, aid us in
discovering it (pp. 198 199).

The process of identifying themes is called open coding for grounded theorists, while
it is known to classic content analysts as qualitative analysis or latent coding (Berelson,
1952; Shapiro & Markoff, 1997; as cited in Bernard & Ryan, 2010). Opler (1945, as cited in
Bernard & Ryan, 2010) identifies three principles for analyzing these themes. One is that
themes could only be seen and discovered by the manifestation of expressions in data. Two is
that some expressions of a theme are evident and culturally accepted, while others are
elusive, symbolic, and peculiar. The last is that cultural systems are composed of sets of
interrelated themes. Opler adds that a themes importance depends on its frequency of
appearance, its pervasiveness across different cultural ideas and practices, how individuals
respond when the theme is violated, and the extent to which the force and variety of a
themes expression is directed by particular contexts.

The Sitio Basi Creek Issue and the Katimbang-Fe Case

As disclaimed in the introduction of this study, some names of people, places, and the
school involved in the case study of this research depicted herein are fictitious in order to
protect the identity of the research participants and mitigate the risks related to the study on
the part of the researcher. No association with any real person, places, or school is intended
or should be inferred. Further, specifically citing news articles that would reveal, directly or

21

indirectly, the said protected identities is withheld. At least three newspapers have covered
the imprisonment of Placido Katimbang, 43, and Zaldy Fe, 31 on January 4, 2011. One is the
annual community newspaper in La Merced produced by an academic institution in its
January April 2011 issue. Another is a monthly community newspaper published by the
town administration in its April 2011 issue. The third is a national daily in its April 18, 2011
publication. In citing these publications, I have used abbreviations for the readers
convenience: ACN for the annual community newspaper, MCN for the monthly community
newspaper, and ND for the national daily. Every sentence claim is cited due to the sensitivity
of the case.

Katimbang and Fe were arrested on January 4 after a buy-and-bust operation

conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP) of La Merced due to drug trafficking
allegations (ACN, 2011). Their family and supporters demanded the release of the two and
claimed the charges filed were fabricated and politically motivated (ibid.). Katimbang was
a contract worker (a utility worker at an international institute according to ND, 2011) and
local coordinator of Kasangga (not its real name), a leftist political party, while Fe a tricycle
driver (ACN, 2011). Katimbangs wife, Lilia, was also arrested and imprisoned for three
days for alarm and scandal and obstruction of justice due to the commotion she made
during the arrest (ibid.).

According to a sworn statement by the La Merced PNP, the buy-and-bust operation

was carried out at 7:30 p.m. at Sitio Basi, Barangay Tanikala (ACN, 2011). Diamond
Extension had been under surveillance by the police after reports of drug trafficking incidents
(MCN, 2011). ACN(2011) reports that Katimbang and Fe were allegedly caught selling
plastic sachets of shabu or methamphetamine hydrochloride. However, MCN (2011)
asserts that three sachets of the said illegal drug were obtained from them. In the buy-andbust operation in which the police were clad in civilian clothes, one police asset passed off as
a buyer of shabu (ibid.). After a brief transaction, the rest of the police started to come
closer and apprehended Katimbang and Fe (ibid.). Katimbang even attempted to resist the
arrest and hurriedly went inside his house to hide, but was eventually convinced to come out

22

(ibid.).They were accused of violating Section 11 Article II of Republic Act No. 9165 or the
Dangerous Drugs Act carrying a punishment of life imprisonment and a fine ranging from
P500,000 to P10,000,000 (ibid.).

Regional Crime Laboratory Office 4As qualitative examination of urine samples

from Katimbang and Fe yielded negative results to methamphetamine and THC-metabolites
tests, both of which were dangerous drugs in the confiscated sachets (ACN, 2011). Both
Katimbang and Fe insisted that the buy-and-bust operation, which happened right after they
came from work, was a frame-up (ibid.). Sa presinto na lamang namin nakita ang
sinasabing shabu na amin daw ibinebenta (We only came to see the shabu they said we
were peddling when we arrived at the police station), stressed Katimbang, who also claimed
that the alleged marked money was his earnings that day (ibid.).

Atty. Manuel Silayan (not his real name), Katimbang and Fes lawyer, identified
flaws in the allegedly fabricated charges by the police such as the lack of providing copies of
the inventory of items recovered (ACN, 2011). The human rights lawyer also said that the
police could be charged with illegal arrest, threats, coercion, and violation of civil and
political rights (ibid.).

ACN (2011) also reports that in November 2010, Katimbang and Fe led protests
against projects of the nearby Chrysalis Academy, especially the construction of a box
culvert (i.e. a drain to channel water) over Sitio Basis creek along which both of their
families lived. Residents in the community opposed this particular project because it could
aggravate flooding, possibly affecting 150 families in the area (ibid.). The two prisoners
believed that their active participation in the protest was the true motive behind their custody
(ibid.). Chrysalis Academy is owned by the family of state-run institution CMBPs former
chairperson Sixto Gorospe (ND, 2011).

Commenting on the arrest, Duarto Panganiban (not his real name), spokesperson of a
militant group with which Katimbang and Fe were affiliated, said that this seems to be the
23

state forces newest strategy they file criminal charges, particularly drugs (related cases),
against members of militant groups to justify illegal arrest and detention (ND, 2011).

On the other hand, on February 11, 2011, the police in a counter-statement said,
Walang katotohanan at bunga ng kathang isip lamang ang mga paratang nila Placido
Katimbang, Zaldy Fe, at Lilia Katimbang upang pagtakpan ang kanilang nagawang
kasalanan (The claims of Placido Katimbang, Zaldy Fe, and Lilia Katimbang are untrue and
fictitious which only serve to cover up their deeds) (ACN, 2011).

Meanwhile, on December 7, 2010, the Department of Environment and Natural

Resources Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (DENR-PENRO) issued a
letter responding to the complaint led by Katimbang against the culvert construction (ACN,
2011). Addressed to Chrysalis Managing Director who happens to be La Merced mayor
Lance Gorospe, the letter advised the school to temporarily stop from introducing any
development on top of the creek and in the creek until such time that the issues and concerns
shall have been resolved and that the necessary permits from concerned government agencies
shall have been assured (ibid.).

In a text message to ACN (2011), Chrysalis Academy Administrative Officer-inCharge Selina Alcachupas denied claims of an expansion project. She said that there is no
expansion being made and we were even the one[s] who fixed the flooding problems as part
of our donation to the community (ibid.). Alcachupas also notified the Katimbang couple
through a letter dated January 18, 2011 that the land on which their house was built was
actually owned by Chrysalis Academy and therefore would be used for development
projects as part of the schools world-class facilities (ibid.).

On January 10, 2011, DENR-PENRO held a technical conference to settle the dispute
(ACN, 2011). Representatives from Sitio Basi and the Sangguniang Bayan (the municipal
council) attended the meeting (ibid.). However, no one came on behalf of Chrysalis
administration (ibid.). Four days later, DENR-PENRO sent a letter to La Merced Mayor
24

Lance Gorospe, Chrysalis Administrative OIC Alcachupas, and Barangay Tanikala

Chairperson Tony Parducho (not his real name) (ibid.). The letter suggested that since their
offices were not represented during the technical conference, they must coordinate with the
complainants regarding the dispute (ibid.). DENR-PENRO reported the results of the
technical conference to the DENR Regional Office on January 31 (ibid.).

Lilia Katimbang claimed that the construction by Chrysalis Academy was still
ongoing and that involved parties had taken no concrete action as of ACNs (2011) press
time. On the other hand, Mayor Gorospe declined to comment on the issue and told the
newspaper to inquire instead at Chrysalis Academys administration.

Pertinent Studies on Oppression

It is a general assumption that in oppressive situations, there exists a dichotomy

between the oppressor and the oppressed. The oppressors-oppressed distinction or dominantdominated opposition is a widely known political argument dichotomizing these two groups
of people based on their asymmetrical power relations. An early use of this distinction is
provided by Hegel (1802) in his political writing The German Constitution. He says, The
Catholics had been in the position of oppressors, and the Protestants of the oppressed. Many
authors including Engels, Marx, Lenin, and Gramsci have subscribed to this argument and
applied it to various contexts. So has Freire (1970) who differentiated the oppressor and the
oppressed, two statuses in an unjust society, in The Pedagogy of the Oppressed. One of the
distinctions that Freire (1970, as cited in Hanna, Talley, & Guindon, 2000) makes between
these two groups of people is that in dominant cultures, the oppressed are being silenced
through education and other institutions as the oppressors define and control their roles and
identities.

Kucukaydin (2008) cited several studies which analyzed the peoples daily
experiences under oppressive situations. Some of them took the form of case studies,
narratives, bibliographies, testimonial narratives, and content analysis. One is Mench and
25

anthropologist Burgos-Debrays I Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Women in Guatemala

(1984) which features the story of an oppressed Mayan woman who became a Nobel Peace
Prize winner in 1992. This classic testimonio, both famous and controversial, reveals the way
she interprets and makes sense of reality when thousands of Indian people in Guatemala lived
under military dictatorship (SparkNotes, 2012). Another is Feitlowitz book titled Lexicon of
Terror: Argentina and the Legacies of Torture (1998). It includes interviews with an eclectic
group of peasants, intellectuals, activists, and bystanders who experienced, resisted, and
overcome Argentinas Dirty War. Such war was a notorious campaign by Argentinas
military dictatorship against alleged leftist political enemies marking a death toll of 10,000 to
30,000 (Encyclopdia Britannica Online, 2012).

Meanwhile, in Veil of Silence: The Argentine Press and the Dirty War, 1976-1983,
Knudson (1997, as cited by Kucukaydin, 2008) reveals and explains that media, particularly
the press, plays an important role in sustaining repression. Rarely did the Argentine Press
stand up against the Dirty War in fear arrest, torture, or murder. Knudson tells the story of
Jacobo Timmerman. He was the publisher and editor of the progressive newspaper La
Opinion, which criticized the military regime and was thrown into one of the numerous
torture chambers for 30 months. The pressure brought by the international community made
possible his release but he was then exiled. Later on, he would tell of his story in the book
Prisoner without a name, cell without a number. Lance Lewis (1981) of the New York Times
Review describes the testimony as gripping in its human stories, not only of brutality but of
courage and love; important because it reminds us how, in our world, the most terrible
fantasies may become fact. An experimental study of Thalhammer (2001) exploring
political mobilizations against a repressive regime suggests that a combination of personal
experiences in past and present repression partly determines who would dare resist its
domination. Thalhammer also presents four kinds of activists: affected activists (advocates),
indirectly affected activists (altruists), affected nonactivists (beholders), and indirectly
affected nonactivists (bystanders). The study is based on in-depth interviews with 78 people
who lived in Argentina during a state terror, 28 of which were non-activists while 50 were
activists.

26

Greens (1994) anthropological metanarrative study of oppressed Guatemalans

reveals that the oppressed could not be silenced all the time, and they can use their body to
express the resistance. Green explores how Guatemalan (Mayan) people particularly the
Xecajian women understand, experience, and cope with fear and intimidation by the military
in their daily life. For instance, she finds out that even if people adjust to fear and terror,
low-intensity panic remains in the shadow of waking consciousness. One cannot live in a
constant state of alertness, and so the chaos one feels becomes infused throughout the body
(p. 231, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008). While the oppressed learn to keep quiet to survive,
they cannot do so absolutely. Their bodies would speak of the oppression through their
eyes, their headaches, their folk songs, and even their jokes.

Literature on Communicating Resistance

Zooming in on the dynamics of communicating nonviolent resistance by Sitio Basi

residents against oppression, this research study was founded on pertinent studies dealing
with the methods of and the raison d'tre for communicating resistance, particularly that of
the nonviolent nature. Martin (1996) defines nonviolent action as techniques of social action
that do not involve causing physical harm to people. These nonviolent struggles are
executed for several objectives like toppling dictatorships; stymieing coups dtat; guarding
against foreign invasions and occupations; providing alternatives to violence in severe ethnic
conflicts; disputing unjust social and economic systems; maturing, preserving, and extending
democratic practices, human rights, civil liberties, and freedom of religion; and condemning
genocide (The Albert Einstein Institution, n.d.).

Resisting the oppression by the marginalized is not merely an opportunity, it is an

obligation (Hay, 2011). Hay establishes this argument from the Kantian idea that peoples
rational nature is a fundamental moral value and as a result, they are obliged to protect this
nature from harm. Systemic perils of oppression can harm the rational nature by causing selfdeception, impairing the capacity to deliberate rationally, and weakening the human will.
Therefore, in oppressive social situations such as the one in which the Sitio Basi residents are

27

placed, the obligation to defend the rational nature is tantamount to an obligation to resist
oppression.

Hay (2011) classifies the actions to meet this obligation of resisting oppression as
external and internal. External resistance entails either activism or opting out. Activism aims
to participate in and radically change social norms, roles, and institutions that constitute an
oppressive system. This can be done by confronting the oppressors themselves, allotting time
or money to organizations which seek to tear down oppressive social institutions,
reappropriating disparaging stereotypes or words like bitch, nigger, and faggot, and
engaging in oppressive social institutions to prove that such institutions do not necessarily
have to be oppressive (like maintaining a marriage with mutual respect). Opting out of the
oppressive social norms, roles, and institutions, on the other hand, involves boycotting a
repressive institution, rejecting to conform to conventional dress or conduct expected of the
social group to which the oppressed individual belongs (when women, for instance, act
assertive, confident, or opinionated), and separating from the oppressors to strengthen
alliance with others of the same oppressed social group.

Meanwhile, as Hay (2011) continues, one can resist oppression internally as well by
building up mental walls against many of the harms to her rational nature threatened by
oppression. The dissident could learn and guard against potential dangers and risks of these
harms. They could also reject repressive social messages that tell them their character and
worth. Hay says that as long as forms of internal resistance like these successfully defend
ones rational nature from the damages of oppression, they have also successfully satisfied
the obligation to resist his or her oppression.

In his book The Politics of Nonviolent Action, Vol. 2: The Methods of Nonviolent
Action, Gene Sharp (1973), dubbed as the "Machiavelli of nonviolence" and the "Clausewitz
of nonviolent warfare" (Weber, 2004), outlines 198 methods of nonviolent action and
discusses each methods historical use. He categorizes them into six major types (as cited in
The Albert Einstein Institution, n.d.):
28

1. Methods of Nonviolent Protest and Persuasion. These include formal statements,

communications with a wider audience, group representations, symbolic public acts,
pressures on individuals, drama and music, processions, honoring the dead, public
assemblies, and withdrawal and renunciation.

2. Methods of Social Noncooperation. These take the form of ostracism of persons,

noncooperation with social events, customs, and institutions, and withdrawal from the
social system.

3. Methods of Economic Noncooperation: Boycotts. These are actions by consumers,

workers and producers, intermediaries, owners and management, holders of financial
resources, and governments.

4. Methods of Economic Noncooperation: Strikes. These are comprised of symbolic

strikes, agricultural strikes, strikes by special groups, ordinary industrial strikes,
restricted strikes, multi-industry strikes, and combination of strikes and economic
closures.

5. Methods of Political Noncooperation. These count rejection of authority, citizens'

noncooperation with government, citizens' alternatives to obedience, action by
government personnel, domestic governmental action, and international governmental
action.

6. Methods of Nonviolent Intervention. These interventions are psychological, physical,

social, economic, and political.

One classic illustration of wide-scale nonviolent struggle in the Philippine context is

the EDSA People Power Movement in February 1986 led by housewife-turned-president
Corazon Aquino. The day after dictator Ferdinand Marcos proclaimed victory over the rigged
29

election, around 1.5 million Aquino supporters gathered in Luneta Park in Manila for a
Triumph of the People Rally (Ackerman & Jack DuVall, 2000). Aquino told the crowd, Im
not asking for violent revolution. This is not the time for that. I always indicated that now is
the way of nonviolent struggle for justice. This means active resistance of evil by peaceful
means (ibid.).

Ackerman and Jack DuVall (2000) picturesquely recount the nonviolent movement
which Aquino was calling for among the Filipino people:

Aquino chose a nationwide boycott of banks, newspapers,

beverages, and movies as a way to escalate the struggle. She
asked depositors to withdraw their funds from large banks with
close ties to Marcos. Schools nationwide should shut down.
Readers should boycott the Marcos-controlled press. Popular
San Miguel beer and Coca Cola products should be left on the
shelves. Theaters showing films starring pro-Marcos actors
should be empty. She asked people to delay paying utility bills
until the electric and phone companies threatened to cut off
service. Taking up the call, depositors in droves took out
money from all of the Marcos-related banks. Less than a week
into the boycott, sales of San Miguel beer were down 30
percent and the share of San Miguel corporation on the Manila
Stock Exchange had slumped more than 18 percent (pp. 384
385).

Also, in order to resist non-violently the suppression of communicating reliable

information on the country, xerox journalism and cassette journalism were practiced
(Maslog, 2007). In xerox journalism, for instance, photocopied articles from foreign
publications were circulated to expose the corruption and lavishness of the Marcos regime
(Teodoro, 2000).

In her article The Saint of Democracy in Time Magazine, Beech (2009) reports that
this People Power within a few years inspired nonviolent uprisings across the world like the
Solidarity in Poland, the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia, the anti-apartheid movement

30

in South Africa, the end of tyrannies in South Korea, Mongolia, and Taiwan, student protests
in Tiananmen Square, and dissent by monks in Burma.

Martin (1996) states that communication is central to the methods of nonviolent

resistance delineated above. He broadly categorized these methods into symbolic actions,
non-cooperation, and intervention and alternative institutions. Symbolic actions, which
include writing letters, delivering speeches, circulating leaflets, organizing vigils and
conducting teach-ins, naturally communicate to both opponents and supporters. Martin
contends that writing a letter may seem ineffectual but it could openly and influentially
challenge a dictator. While such symbolic actions are verbal, some like the Norwegians
wearing of paperclips as protest against Nazi occupation communicate without words.

In addition, methods of non-cooperation, intervention, and alternative institutions

come with a communicative component (ibid.). Martin cites the industrial action called workto-rule in which employees are working to the strictest interpretation of the rules as a job
action (Merriam-Webster, 2012). Such protest communicates the powerful message to the
employer that workers cooperation is crucial to the smooth operation of the company and
that these workers have ceased to cooperate until their demands are met. Workers also
communicate within themselves to coordinate and sustain the campaign.

Apart from the centrality of communication in the methods of nonviolent action,

Martin (1996) adds that it is essential to the success of such methods. Three communication
goals ought to be met to achieve this success. One is for nonviolent activists to consistently
communicate among themselves as regards their goals and methods; two is for the activists to
strategically communicate to the opponent/s directly and through actions; and lastly for them
not to overlook communicating with third parties who are not directly involved in the issue to
get them on their side or keep them from joining the other. A recent illustration of this third
communication goal is how Google executive Wael Ghonim initiated a nonviolent revolution
on social networking sites Facebook and Twitter (Townsend, 2011). Through social media,
the then 30-year-old Internet activist called thousands of disgruntled Egyptians to protest
31

against Hosni Mubaraks regime on the streets of Cairo. After weeks of violence, the longtime despot was removed from power (ibid.).

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, leader of Indias independence movement against

British colonization, is known for his philosophy and practice of nonviolent protest in
upholding socio-political progress (Encyclopdia Britannica, 2012). In his autobiography
entitled The Story of My Experiments with Truth (1927, as cited in Martin, 1996), Gandhi
acknowledges the power of truth and believes that such truth could communicate directly to
the oppressors heart. He coins and develops the term satyagraha which is loosely
translated insistence on truth or truth force to refer to his notion of nonviolent resistance.
Gandhi (1920) himself defines it as vindication of truth, not by infliction of suffering on the
opponent, but on oneself.

Martin (1996) argues that the essence of satyagraha is communication. When

violence as a form of communication is a monologue, nonviolence allows for a dialogue in a
conflict situation. Gandhi starts his campaigns by tapping usual communication channels like
requesting officials in a polite manner to change oppressive policies. If this fails, then the
Indian leader would initiate more encompassing nonviolent methods such as marches,
boycotts, and illegal activities. Gandhi regards nonviolent ways of resistance as strategies to
convert or melt the heart of the oppressor. He believes that when oppressors witness the
suffering borne by the peaceful dissidents, or satyagrahis, they would be impacted and
persuaded by it and eventually meet their demands. This theory is supported by Galtung
(1989):

It is when ones own people, the Other inside the Self, or the
Self in the Other, start reacting the same way, nonviolently,
sending a forceful signal that we are not tolerating this any
longer, that chords of responsiveness are being touched.
Doubts about own legitimacy are generated. Nonviolence in
general, and civil disobedience in particular, is supposed to
work by stirring sluggish consciences, making the oppressor
aware of the amount of suffering he has brought upon the
oppressed. But if the oppressed are not seen at all or are seen as
32

dangerous, capable of inflicting suffering on oneself, this no

longer works (pp. 19 20).

But this theory of Gandhi did not always hold true in practice. Still Martin (1996)
cites Weber (1993) who analyzed the 1930 Salt Satyagaraha in which hundreds of Indian
protesters marched to Dharasana Salt Works to challenge British colonial rules monopoly on
salt production. Contrary to the expectation of swaying the lathi-armed police through this
nonviolent act, hundreds of activists were beaten and jailed. Further, it did not result in a
concession from the British, bringing Weber to conclude that a direct conversion of
opponents was a failure.

However, Weber (1993) continues, a different process of conversion emerged.

Journalist Webb Miller of the United Press in the US picked up the story of the repressed
satyagraha movement and came up with reports contradicting those which were official.
Millers reports reached and moved the international community which eventually opposed
British colonial rule in India. This indirect conversion triggered Indias independence in
1947.

Weber (1993) also notes that this indirect conversion is also corroborated by
Galtungs (1989) hypothesis called the Great Chain of Nonviolence. Galtung argues that
social distance between the oppressor and the oppressed influences the success of nonviolent
action: an increased social distance could aggravate cruel repression while a decreased one
could allow for greater responsiveness on the part of the oppressor. To bridge this gap, the inbetween groups must be mobilized to communicate the concerns of the oppressed to the
oppressor, and to maintain social and human ties with both of them. In the Salt Satyagrahas
case, Miller served as an in-between chain between the Indian protesters and the white
westerners. The latter, in turn, had a closer link to the British colonizers. Meanwhile, in the
Marcos dictatorship, Galtung identified the bourgeoisie from Manila and the leftists as the inbetween groups between Malacaang and Washington (the oppressors), and the Filipino poor
and rural/urban proletariat (the oppressed).

33

Martin (1996) makes a connection between Gandhis doctrine of satyagraha and

Jrgen Habermas theory of communicative action, specifically his ideal speech situation
(Habermas, 1984). This ideal speech situation is made possible by the ability of every
individual to communicate, to engage in dialogue, and to arrive at an inter-subjective
agreement (instead of an individually sought truth in nature). Simply put, Habermas (1984)
believes that truth is attained by rational discussion without repression. Martin (1996)
contends that while the clash between the satyagrahis and the police in Dhrasana patently
departs from an ideal speech situation, the link between these nonviolent protesters and the
journalist Miller was closer to one. Therefore, he also argues that Galtungs Great Chain of
Nonviolence operates in practice like a chain of reasonable speech situations which, while
certainly not ideal, provide better prospects for the sharing and creating of truths than the two
end points of the chain.

These two ends in the chain imply a considerable discrepancy in power. Kipnis
(1976, 1990, as cited in Martin, 1996) explains that wielding power by those coming from
one end makes them believe that those from the other end who are under their power are
dependent and unworthy, and therefore can be exploited. Lord Acton (1887) in his letter to
Bishop Mandell Creighton encapsulates this concept of power exploitation in a famous
quote: Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Martin (1996) puts
forward that communicating truth is more effective when there is no power discrepancy;
therefore, communication through intercessors is more strategic than communication
between the extreme sides of the power chain.

But the reason why such power imbalance exists in the first place, as Sharp (1973, as
cited in Martin, 1996) argues, can be explained by his consent theory of power which simply
states that rulers hold power because it was allowed by their subjects. This power vaporizes if
the subjects withdraw their consent through nonviolent means. Martin (1996) adds that the
consent theory of power implies the importance of nonviolent resistance in the struggle for
legitimacy, and communication is clearly a central factor in this struggle... He explains that
the powerful uses communication to vindicate their power and privileges, while the power-

34

deprived communicate to maintain the status quo and challenge the former. To him,
nonviolent resistance could be seen as a way to achieve legitimacy in which the means of
which dialogical communication is central concur with the end, a society in the absence of
oppression. This setup is a far cry from violent struggle. He cites Semelin (1993): Civilian
resistance is above all an affirmation of legitimacy, which the language of symbols expresses
perfectly and which the force of arms is powerless to destroy" [emphasis in original] (p. 162).

35

CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY

This chapter begins with a discussion of qualitative methodology as the paradigm of

the research study. Subsequently, it covers narrative analysis, data collection and analysis,
data gathering, and criteria for the narrative research.

The Qualitative Paradigm

Based on the nature of this study which sought to explore the dynamics of
communicating resistance by Sitio Basi residents against an oppressive ecologically risky
project, the qualitative research paradigm was employed. According to Merriam (2009),
qualitative research aims to understand how people interpret their experiences, how they
construct their worlds, and what meaning they attribute to their experiences (p. 5). She
suggests that instead of identifying cause-effect relations, predicting, and describing a certain
attribute in a population, which characterize quantitative methodology, one might look into
how people make sense of phenomena in which they are involved. This way, a more realistic
understanding of the world (Matveev, 2002) and a holistic perspective of the phenomenon
under study could be obtained (Bogdan & Taylor, 1975; Patton, 1980, as cited in Matveev,
2002). Similarly, in addressing its first specific research question, this study sought to
describe how Sitio Basi residents interpret oppression in the Sitio Basi creek project. The
study attempted to explore how they interpret their oppressive experiences, construct their
oppressed worlds, and attribute meanings to their oppressive situations. From the subjective
experiences of the research participants, the procedures of and the raison d'tre for
communicating resistance were also derived. Therefore, a more realistic and holistic
understanding of the dynamics of communicating resistance was obtained. The qualitative
paradigm also allows for an interaction with the research participants in their own language
and expression (Kirk & Miller, 1986, as cited in ibid.). In the case of this research study,
36

conducting semi-structured and in-depth interviews in Filipino allowed my research

participants to speak in their very language and expression, as I also adopted empathic
understanding, a concept Griffin (2004, as cited in Kasilag, 2010) regards as crucial in
phenomenology.

Patton (2002, pp. 40-41) enumerates 12 features of the qualitative research paradigm
which characterize the nature and assumptions of this research study. I have contextualized
these features in terms of the conduct of the research. They are listed below.

In terms of research design

1. Naturalistic inquiry: Real-world phenomena are studied in their natural settings,

where human behavior and events transpire. (The conduct of this study included visits
to Sitio Basi to observe its geographical, demographic, and social milieu. I took note
of the houses and the people living there, and went to the community both in daylight
and in nighttime to gain more familiarity with it. I had interacted with other residents
in the community other than my research participants; in fact, one of my
conversations with Socorro Lim and Lilia Katimbang lasted a few hours before
midnight unawares. I also conducted the in-depth interview with Lilia Katimbang,
one of my research participants, right in front of her house in Sitio Basi. She also
accompanied me in inspecting the creek and the box culvert being constructed on top
of it. On the other hand, I interviewed my two other participants in the municipal
police station where they were detained.)

2. Emergent design flexibility: Inquiry responds to the changes in the phenomenon being
studied. (The research inquiry originally comprised the objective of exploring how
the oppressors themselves utilize communication to counter the resistance by the
oppressed. However, the phenomenon in the Sitio Basi issue during the conduct of
the study provided not many opportunities to fulfill this research goal, partly because
of the lack of access to the life experiences, much less the subjective ones, on the part
37

of the oppressor. As a result, the goal was omitted from the study and was rather
suggested for future inquiries.)

3. Purposeful sampling: Study cases are deliberately chosen due to their potential to
provide extensive information pertinent to the study. (The three research participants
in this study played significant roles in the Sitio Basi creek issue. For one, it was
Placido and Zaldy who led the protest against the construction at the creek and were
imprisoned for allegedly doing so. Meanwhile, Lilia, the wife of Placido, supported
the resistance and was herself detained for three days for supposedly creating a
commotion when her husband was arrested. After the in-depth interviews, these three
research participants more than sufficiently provided extensive information on how
the Sitio Basi residents interpret oppression in the creek issue, and on how and why
they communicate resistance against the oppressive ecologically risky project at the
creek.)

In terms of data-collection and fieldwork

4. Qualitative data: Descriptions drawn from methods of inquiry are rich, detailed, and
thick; they also capture the participants perspectives and experiences. (Semistructured and in-depth interviews which lasted from 30 to 90 minutes were
conducted to generate rich, detailed, and thick descriptions. Moreover, as mentioned
earlier, empathic understanding in the qualitative interviews, which Griffin [2004]
considers essential in phenomenology, was adopted.)

5. Personal experience and engagement: The researcher is immersed with the

participants and in the setting under study; the researcher also regards his or her
personal experiences and insights as important to the inquiry. (As previously
mentioned, I exposed myself to the community of Sitio Basi and its people. I
observed its geography, houses, and some aspects of the communitys daily grind. I
inspected the creek and the building being constructed over it. I spent time with some
38

of the residents to discuss things pertinent to the study. My interviews with the
research participants had been intimate and in-depth. On the other hand, I had
considered my own subjectivity personal insights and experiences as a valuable
part of the research.)

6. Empathic neutrality and mindfulness: Empathy and neutrality are practiced in

interviews, and vigilance is exercised in observations. (I tried to fill the shoes of my
research participants as they recounted their stories of oppression and resistance. My
empathy was indicated by the emotional responses I had toward their accounts. At the
same time, I exercised neutrality by suspending personal judgments and considering
possible counter arguments to the claims made by the participants. Whenever I felt
necessary, I tried to raise these counter arguments albeit in a respectful way. For
instance, I told Placido in the interview that some people might think that the reason
why he chose to lead the protest against the project at the creek was that he was a
member of a militant group. As would be revealed in the findings, he said he would
still carry out the resistance without this kind of affiliation because he knew it was the
right thing to do.)

7. Dynamic systems: The researcher pays attention to process, system, and situation
dynamics. (The research was not only interested in a phase of a process, in a
component of a system, or in an aspect of a situation, but in the entirety of the
phenomenon being studied. For starters, the focus of the study was the dynamics of
communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an oppressive
ecologically risky project. Hence, I tried to keep an eye on this bigger picture in the
conduct of my research.)

In terms of analysis

8. Unique case orientation: Each case is assumed unique and special. (The Sitio Basi
creek case was distinctive as other oppressive ecologically risky problems, or
39

generally oppressive situations for that matter, in that the case occurred in a particular
socio-political milieu occupied by individuals who are unique in their subjective
experiences and sense making.)

9. Inductive analysis and creative synthesis: The researcher starts with details to surface
important patterns, themes, and interrelationship, then he or she ends with a creative
synthesis. (Transcripts of the semi-structured and in-depth interviews were considered
as textual data from which themes were derived. These themes were synthesized into
findings which would address the research questions.)

10. Holistic perspective: The phenomenon under study is regarded as a complex system
with interdependencies and dynamics which could not be reduced. (As mentioned
earlier, the focus of the study was the dynamics of communicating resistance by the
poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically risky project. As a result, I
regarded this dynamics as both a phenomenon and a system which is complex,
interdependent, and irreducible.)

11. Context sensitivity: Findings are appropriately established in a social, historical, and
cultural context; they are not necessarily considered generalizable across space and
time.(As stated in the limitations of the study, three adult peoples oppressive
experiences were analyzed within a particular socio-political milieu, which is Sitio
Basi in La Merced, the Philippines; consequently, findings of this study might not
apply to other age groups, locations, time, and contexts.)

12. Voice, perspective, and reflexivity: The researcher owns and reflects on his or her
voice and perspective; he or she also balances between objectivity and subjectivity.
(Throughout the conduct and writing of this research, I tried to be conscious of my
own voice and perspective and reflect on how my subjectivity was playing part in the
unfolding of the research process. I also made conscious attempts to strike a balance

40

in using my objective and subjective lenses as I looked into the phenomenon being
studied, in order to increase the trustworthiness of my research.)

Narrative Analysis

This study employed the narrative research to explore the dynamics of

communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically
risky project. Rationale for this selection was patterned after that of Kucukaydin (2008) in his
dissertation on counter-learning under oppression (CLUO). One, narration serves as a
symbolic and coded platform for self-expression amidst an oppressive condition. Two, since
narrative analysis and constructivism share commonalities on assumptions regarding the
construction of reality, narration enhances the analysis of how Sitio Basi residents construct
reality and deconstruct the oppressive structure. From this constructed reality, one might
derive the rationale for and the methods of communicating their resistance against the
oppressive project involving the creek. Three, narrative analysis also puts premium on sociopolitical context in which the residents are situated. This is because narrative discourses are
themselves cultural meanings and interpretations that guide perception, thought, interaction,
and action (Daiute and Lightfoot, 2004, p. x).

Data Collection and Analysis

Data was collected at a community called Sitio Basi in the town of La Merced, the
Philippines. According to one of its residents who was also a research participant in this
study, Sitio Basi, an L-shaped strip of land, constitutes 56 adult residents. Twenty-two of
these live modest lives as tricycle drivers, construction workers, sari-sari or small retail
storeowners, launderers, etc. The rest of the 34 on the other hand are office workers, doctors,
relatives to overseas contract workers, and bank and government employees.

41

Sitio Basi was chosen for this research study due to an on-going oppressive situation
involving its creek. Since the nearby Chrysalis Academy was expanding its premises, the
administration had begun to construct a box culvert over the creek which the residents
claimed and the local branch of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR) confirmed would aggravate the flooding in the community. This flooding would
affect 150 families in the area. Residents as a result protested against covering the creek, and
this objection was the suspected cause of the imprisonment of two of them. In this narrative
study, a purposive sampling with three participants was employed. Two of them were the
imprisoned men most active in the protest against the box culvert construction: Placido
Katimbang and Zaldy Fe. Katimbangs wife Lilia, who was jailed for three days due to
alarm and scandal and obstruction of justice, was the third research participant. Detailed,
descriptive, and in-depth information were collected from the participants. Thick description
to address the research problem was also arrived at. The data collected then underwent the
procedures of narrative analysis.

From the four traditions of narrative analysis in the social sciences according to
Bernard and Ryan (2010), the study adopted the phenomenological tradition which uses
personal narratives as windows into the lived experience of the narrators and [tries] to
achieve empathic understanding of that experience (p. 248). The study did not merely focus
on the story itself but on the experience of the individual narrating the story.

The study involved the following six general steps adapted from Bernard and Ryan
(2010) in narrative analysis under the phenomenological tradition:

1. Identifying a thing or a phenomenon whose essence is to be understood in the study

2. Identifying the researchers biases and striving to set them aside (Bracketing)
3. Gathering narratives about the phenomenon from individuals who experience it by
asking open-ended questions and probing
4. Using the now-fresh intuition after bracketing to identify the essentials of the
phenomenon
42

5. Writing down the essentials orderly with exemplary quotes from the narratives
6. Repeating steps 4 and 5 until everything has been learned about the lived experience
of the research participants

Following the techniques presented by Bernard and Ryan (2010) in the book
Analyzing Qualitative Data, I analyzed the interview transcripts with the help of a colleague
(who also transcribed the interviews) in order to enhance the bracketing procedure. I also
sought to attain empathic understanding of the phenomenon being studied to effectively
select quotes that would exemplify how the research participants truly experienced such
phenomenon (i.e. communicating resistance amid oppression). I emulated Bramley and
Eatough (2005) in reading over the interview transcripts to capture the whole picture of the
narrators accounts, in making notes from the transcripts about anything within the text that
appeared interesting or significant, and in forming themes which were felt to capture the
essence of the accounts (p. 226).

Themes for this study were generated empirically from the data provided by the
interview transcripts. The coding process involved the search for the following thememarkers throughout the transcripts as adapted from Bernard and Ryan (2010): repetitions,
indigenous typologies (unfamiliar local words and familiar words used in unfamiliar ways),
metaphors and analogies, transitions (by way of pauses, changes in vocal tone, and phrases
indicative of transitions), similarities and differences among sentences, expressions, and
entire bodies of text, linguistic connectors (such as causal relations, conditional relations,
taxonomic categories, time-oriented relations, x-is-y or attributive relations, contingent
relations, spatial relations, operational definitions, examples, comparisons, class inclusions,
synonyms, antonyms, provenance or source, and circularity or definition), missing data, and
theory-related material. The last one, according to Spradley (1979, as cited in Bernard &
Ryan, 2010 ), is characterized by evidence of social conflict, cultural contradictions,
informal methods of social control, things that people do in managing impersonal social
relationships, methods by which people acquire and maintain achieved and ascribed status,
and information about how people solve problems (p. 62). Themes derived from theory-

43

related material provided for the analysis of the socio-political context of the oppressive
ecological risk problem involving the residents of Sitio Basi.

Coding was processed with the aid of a special software called XSight, a qualitative
research software developed by QSR International which helps the researcher organize and
interpret unstructured data (QSR International, 2011). Features include analysis frameworks
that import and arrange data like transcripts and Word documents; means which scrutinize
theories and relationships; and tools creating maps that would visualize ideas and findings,
and reports that would present them systematically (Stuart, 2008). XSight can also manage
both small or large amounts of data (Pakenham, 2005). Its search and query tools facilitate
the review and reflection process. By speeding up the manual processes, the researcher
could dedicate more time to analysis and interpretation, squeezing out every last bit of value
from the data (ibid., p. 48).

Transcripts of the interviews with Placido and Lilia Katimbang, and Zaldy Fe were
imported and stored into an XSight project. An analysis framework was created to categorize
and structure the data like participant feedback and research insights. An outline of headings
showed the themes which emerged from the data which could be easily added, edited, and
reordered. Also displayed for each heading or theme were related commentaries which could
be an articulation, a verbatim, or an idea. Articulation codes are descriptions by the
researcher with regards to the content (Garland, 2009), while verbatim are exemplary quotes
from the narratives. Ideas pertain to insights generated by the researcher during the analysis
which could address the research problems.

The researcher was guided by the offline tutorial provided by the software itself.

44

Data Gathering

Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted. By securing a letter of request

signed by the dean of the college where I was studying at the time of the conduct of the
study, I was able to interview Placido and Zaldy in separate sessions inside the police station
of La Merced where they were held in custody. Zaldys wife, Leah, who happened to visit
her husband during the time of the interview, also took part at some points of the inquiry. On
the other hand, in-depth interview with Lilia was conducted in front of her house in Sitio
Basi, which is right beside the creek and the box culvert construction on top of the body of
water. In relation to the research problem, the focus of the interviews was the participants
rationale and methodology for communicating their resistance against an oppressive
ecologically risky project involving the Sitio Basi creek. With the consent of the participants,
the interviews were audiotaped and labelled. Then the recordings were listened to and
transcribed verbatim (See Appendix B for the interview transcriptions). Notes were taken
about the interview as well. Transcripts of the interview did not include any identifying
information for safety and confidentiality reasons. As mentioned several times, the names of
the participants used in both the transcripts and the research paper were merely
pseudonyms. Apart from the interview, pertinent documents like news articles and court
affidavits served as secondary data sources. Interviews with each three participant lasted
from 30 to 90 minutes.

Wolensky (1996, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008) stresses that in conducting

interviews, the researcher must adopt the flow of a conversation, though guide questions are
still necessary, and so are follow-up ones. This is the interview framework utilized by the
study:

1. Present (How are you today?)

2. Looking back
a. Tell me about the issue on the Sitio Basi creek last year.
45

b. Did you do anything to deal with the issue?

c. If so, what did you do? If not, why didnt you do anything?
d. If so, how did you communicate your resistance against it?
e. What made you resist in the first place?
f. Do you think there is oppression in the creek issue?
g. If so, who do you think is the oppressor? And who is the oppressed?
h. What is life like when oppressed?

3. Future
a. How do you see the future?
b. What are your goals in the future?
c. Do you think there is hope in your situation?

Criteria for the Narrative Research

Kucukaydin (2008) cites Riessman (1993) in the importance of the interpretations

trustworthiness in narrative research, since a narrative is not meant to be read as an exact
record of what happened nor is it a mirror of a world out there (p. 64). Riessman identifies
four criteria to ensure trustworthiness: persuasiveness, correspondence, coherence, and
pragmatic use.

46

CHAPTER 4
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

This chapter presents in detail the findings generated from the narrative analysis.
Such findings address the general research question concerning the dynamics of
communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically
risky project. Specifically, they inform this study which sought to describe how these people
interpret oppression; examine how they communicate their resistance against the oppressive
ecologically risky project; and analyze why they choose to communicate resistance despite
the risks involved. While findings about the dynamics of communicating resistance by the
poor and marginalized were examined using critical constructivism, findings on the sociopolitical context in which they experience the oppression and how this context has affected
them were analyzed using the Marcusian critical theory. Moreover, findings are separated
into two sections to parallel to the research questions of this study: oppression (for the first
specific research question) and communicating resistance (for the second and third research
questions).

Through the Lens of the Research Instrument

Apart from serving as a necessary background for the subsequent discussion of the
findings of this study, this section reflects one of the features of the qualitative paradigm
according to Patton (2002) which is that the researcher also regards his or her personal
experiences and insights as important to the inquiry. As a researcher, who was also the
research instrument in this study, I have never become profoundly cognizant of the realities
of oppression and how it affects the lives of the truly poor and marginalized until I listened to
the narratives of Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia. It is true enough that over two decades of living
has provided me the time and opportunity to know what is going on in my community, across
the country, and around the world: the truth that there is an encompassing presence of
47

dominant groups, structures, roles, norms, and discourses which prevail at the expense of
anything or anyone running counter to it. Oppression, or its manifestations, at the very least,
has lingered in the consciousness of people everywhere as it continues to wear a familiar face
in several media platforms like film, television, print, and social media, resulting in the
possibility of creating a discourse on its nature, dynamics, problems, and even solutions.
Still, people who are more exposed to medias portrayals of violence, a form of oppression
according to Young (2004), become more desensitized to actual aggression (Thomas et al.,
1977), an effect which disengages them from looking at oppressive realities more critically.
At the very most, oppression may not only be a phenomenon an individual is merely aware
of on a cognitive level but may also be experienced, internalized, and marginalized when he
or she has become its very victim. Such was the case of Sitio Basi residents when their
community was being threatened by severe flooding due to the construction of a cover over a
nearby creek by Chrysalis Academy, a school owned by the municipal mayors family.

Despite possessing a knowledge of oppressive realities in the past, from what I have
learned from the media, my education, the literature, and stories from other people, I believe
that for several years I have subscribed to the dominant discourse which sustains oppression,
specifically that which pertains to mainstream journalism and entertainment, Western
(chiefly American) orientation, and state agenda. But through further exposure to critical
discourse in the University and from critical literature, and by listening to the stories of and
immersing with the oppressed rather briefly (as part of a college civic organization which I
headed, I immersed with farmers in a rural village in Camagay of which experience included
rice planting, fishing, and learning more about the peasant sector in the national context), I
was able to adopt a critical lens through which I can interpret a reality and act upon it in a
critical fashion. I was able to muster more courage to critique and challenge in my writings
the dominant authority whom I find remiss in his or her duty. For instance, in my article
published in a national daily (2012) about the recent killings in La Merced which were
popularly and partially attributed to poor security enforcement by the town administration, I
echoed the popular and my personal sentiment against the municipal mayor, who is actually
an acquaintance:

48

Public anger at the state of [La Merced] is all over the social
media. [HEU, not its real name] students, in particular, are
aghast at the [Gorospe] administrations inability to provide
effective and consistent security measures on campus and
outside. With the killings serving as the last straw in the
accumulating discontent with the mayor, local residents may
well be screaming, in thought or in speech, Tama na, sobra na,
palitan na!
Hell hath no fury like a people denied principled leadership.
And hell hath no fury like a people deprived of a decent [La
Merced].

But one need not undergo a formal training on how to think critically to be able to
challenge oppression, as evidenced by poor and marginalized residents in Sitio Basi like the
Katimbang couple and Zaldy Fe who communicated their resistance against an oppressive
ecologically risky project attributed to the most powerful person in La Merced, the mayor.
Coincidentally, he is the same object of criticism in the passage above concerning the series
of killings due to the towns poor security enforcement. Still, however encompassing
oppressive structures and practices have become across time and location, the discourse of
resistance remains in the hands of those who do not yield on the basis of what they believe is
right or ethical a confirmation of an adage by Roman historian Tacitus: A desire to resist
oppression is implanted in the nature of man (BrainyQuote, 2012).

Moreover, the critical perspective which I have developed and is still developing
allowed me to surface and discuss the findings from the critical theoretical framework used
in this study. As previously mentioned, the findings are separated into two sections to parallel
to the research questions of this study: oppression (for the first specific research question)
and communicating resistance (for the second and third research questions).

49

Oppression

Oppression breeds from an oppressors personal agenda

Initially, research participants establish the intention of Chrysalis Academy and the
town administration to cover the Sitio Basi creek by using throughout the interviews terms
such as motibo (motive), gusto nilang mangyari (what they want to happen), gusto kaming...
(they want us to...), iniinteres (someone getting interested into something), and sariling
interes (self-interest). They pointed out that covering the creek, which inevitably would
require the dismantling of the nearby houses about the body of water, paves the way for
further expansion of Chrysalis Academy. As the construction of the box culvert progressed
and the residents noticed the worsening situation of flooding, which they attribute to the said
project, Placido recounts discussing this concern among his neighbors:

Ah nagsimula na magkaroon ng pulong-pulong na yan dahil

dun nung nakakaramdam na sila ng, kami, nakakaramdam na
kami ng panganib dahil sa kaunting ambon lang, kaunting ulan
ay lumalaki yung i-- yung tubig. So naobserbahan ng bawat
residente na Aba delikado nga tayo! Bakit tinatakpan? So
bilang residente, syempre kami-kami concerned sa bawat isa
kaya nagkaroon ng pagpupulong. At: sa:: sa pagpupulong na
yun, lumabas ang mga daing na, na::, lumabas nga ang
leakage na talagang gusto kaming paalisin ng Chrysalis
Academy para sa kanilang pagpapalawak ng lugar. Sila'y
nanghihinayang, gusto nilang makuha yung, yung:: kaunting
ilog dahil kung matatakpan mo yan ay makakakuha ka dun na
almost, ipalagay natin mga 2000 na square meter, malaking
bagay din sa kanila.
Ah, we began holding those small town meetings when they,
we, started feeling that we are in danger because with just a
light drizzle, light rainfall, the cre-, the water already rises
drastically. Every resident had observed that, Wait, we are in
danger! Why is it being covered? So as residents, of course,
we are concerned with each other so we arranged to have a
small town meeting. And in that:: that meeting, we were able to
voice out complaints that, that::, the leakage about Chrysalis
Academy wanting to evict us from our homes to utilize the
50

land was suddenly brought to our attention. They think it's a

waste, they also want to occupy the, the:: the creek since with it
covered, you almost have, let's say about 2000 square meters of
land, and that is a big deal for them.

Lilia points to the same reason:

Siguro, ah unang una, gusto nilang makuha tong lugar namin.

Kasi para lumaki yung lugar nila. Yun lang ang alam ko kung
bakit sila nag-aagrabyado.
Maybe, ah first of all, they wanted to occupy the land we are
currently living in. To expand their own land. That is the only
reason I know of as to why they would treat us unfairly.

However, in an official letter addressed by Chrysalis Academy Administrator Selina

Alcachupas on January 18, 2011 to the Katimbang couple, which was two weeks after the
detainment of Placido Katimbang and Zaldy Fe, the school administration claims that the lot
which the couple occupies is also property of the school. The letter gives the following
statement:

...nais naming ipaalam sa inyo na parte ng nasasakupang lupa

ng institusyon ay nasakop din ng kinatatayuan ng inyong
bahay. Nais po naming ipagbigay-alam sa inyo na ang
nasabing lupa ng [Chrysalis] na inyong sinakop ay gagamitin
na para sa mga improvement... Dahil dito, bibibigyan namin
kayo ng sapat na panahon (30 days) mula sa pagtanggap ng
liham na ito para tanggalin ang anumang istruktura na
sumakop sa lupa ng [Chrysalis].
...we want to inform you that part of the land of the institution
has been occupied by your house. We also want to inform you
that the said land belonging to [Chrysalis] which you are
currently occupying will now be utilized for some
improvements... Due to this matter, we are giving you enough
time [30 days] from receiving this letter to remove any
structure that occupies the [Chrysalis] land property.

51

The schools claim to property of the said area is a statement Lilia rejects by saying
the creek and the area right about it is government-owned (as corroborated by both Placido
and Zaldy), and that around 20 years ago she had asked permission to settle where their
house is now built from the then village leader turned mayor of La Merced
currentlyCamagay Vice Governor Antonio Salvi. The permission, she said, was granted (See
Appendix B, Line 1189). Also, during the local and national electoral campaign period in
2010, then mayor Salvi, a sponsor of their wedding, told her that only the government could
drive them away from the creek. However, Salvi also advised the couple to move in to the
governments relocation site. Lilia did not find living in the site practical for several reasons
(e.g. long distance from the downtown and latent high living costs) and so rejecting the
mayors offer. She says she held onto Salvi word that her family could stay along the Sitio
Basi creek (See Appendix B, Line 1383).

Apart from the dispute over who truly owns the creek and its vicinity, Chrysalis
Academy, through Alcachupas, also denies the very existence of a construction project over
the creek, saying there is no expansion being made and [they] were even the one[s] who
fixed the flooding problems as part of [their] donation to the community (ACN, 2011). This
contradicts the letter Alcachupas herself sent the Katimbang couple, which informed them
that the land they were occupying would be utilized for some improvements. Lilia claimed
that the construction went on nevertheless and that involved parties had taken no concrete
action as of the ACN's (2011) press time. On such a community issue, incumbent La Merced
Mayor Gorospe whose family owns Chrysalis Academy itself declined to comment and
told the said newspaper to inquire instead at the school administration.

The National Census Office (as cited in Cruz, 2010) defines informal settlers as
households occupying a lot rent-free without the consent of the owner. Adopting a more
specific definition by the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC),
the 2010 Census of Population consider those living in danger areas such as rivers,
waterways, canals, esteros, or creeks as informal settlers. Furthermore, in a press release
issued by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (2011), tolerating informal

52

settlements along esteros, creeks, waterways riverbanks and shorelines by local officials is a
violation of law. Indeed, residents like Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia might admit to be occupying
a lot rent-free and along what is considered by the law to be a danger area, but such legal or
social appropriation does not change the oppressive discourse hovering Sitio Basi. They
could have availed of their entitlement to Republic Act 7279 or the Urban Development and
Housing Act of 1992 or UDHA, which mandates local government units (LGUs) to
implement a Registration of Socialized Housing Beneficiaries providing special
considerations for settlers who occupy danger areas [like the creek] and other public places,
or areas affected by government infrastructure projects, and in lands when there is a court
order for eviction and demolition (as cited in ibid.). However, as previously mentioned,
Lilia prefers to stay in her current dwelling for practicality purposes. Whether this decision is
ethical or not is beyond the scope of this study or my judgment as the researcher. To reiterate
the principal aim of this study, the oppressive dynamics of the Sitio Basi creek issue with
communication as its focal component is that which was examined. Nevertheless, the legal
context of the occupation of Sitio Basi residents alongside the creek is an important
consideration when examining a normative issue in the community such as the oppressive
ecologically risky problem. Looking through the legal lens is essential in examining the
merits of the residents claims of oppression and justification for resistance.

Oppressive structures and practices stem from the oppressors propensity to pursue
his or her own interests at the expense of a vulnerable group or entity. For instance, in the
case of this study, the pursuit by the Gorospe-owned Chrysalis Academy entails expanding
its territory which it could argue as a plain initiative for school improvement, but not
according to the constructs of Sitio Basi residents. Taking this issue in the socio-political
context of La Merced, the constructs of skepticism towards the Gorospes, particularly Mayor
Lance and his father, former CMBP Chair Sixto, are not only held by such residents but are
also shared by more segments of the town population. The constructs, I argue, have sprung
from the background, priorities, decisions, and actions of the powerful family which had their
bearing on La Merced. I described these factors in a published article (ND, 2012). In citing a
part of it, I have used fictitious names.

53

Then Lance Gorospe came into the picture. He ran in the

mayoral election, eliciting some controversy. Brickbats were
hurled at him, such as doubts on his being a bona fide La
Merced resident, his rumored motive of merely looting the
town, and the alleged diversion of public funds from the
CMBP formerly chaired by his father Sixto to the Gorospeowned Chrysalis Academy, which is also in La Merced. (Ten
years after the school was founded by Sixto Gorospe,
Chrysalis Academy hosted [an international sports games with
its sophisticated facilities])
Many townsfolk didnt like the way Gorospe ran his electoral
campaign. His group doled out apples, rice and clothes to
residents and reportedly gave away P500 bills in the village of
Orobis. My granny told me that when she and other senior
citizens attended one of Gorospes campaign gatherings, they
were made to stand up and pledge their votes to him. She even
received a chocolate cake from the candidate on her birthday.
Gorospe won the mayoral post.
The truth is that the mayor and I know each other, as I have
hosted the Ms. La Merced pageant thrice. I once asked him
about his plans to improve the education, livelihood and health
of the townsfolk, and egged him to deliver on these effectively.
He came up with an answer for each of the three sectors, and
one could only hope that he would walk the talk. But about two
years have passed, and the last thing you do to your people is to
make them wait.
Today, about 100 lampposts line the road leading to the HEU
campus, beaming pink light at nighttime. [A] columnist claims
the lampposts were installed by CMBP workers on Election
Day itself. Also, a huge commercial complex on the same road,
called La Merced Nexus, is under construction. By the
standards of Western modernity, these projects ought to sound
truly promising. I look at these projects and Im frankly
puzzled as to how this evolving face of La Merced and its
controversial dynamics would actually benefit its people, my
own people, especially in the long run. For starters, are the
fundamental needs of an ordinary La Merced citizen being met
by the local government?

Oppression as a function of an intent to satisfy ones private or selfish interest reflects

a familiar insight about the nature of (wo)man. In his examination of Henry David Thoreau
54

in the context of conscience and law, Hurst (1974) says that human nature is characterized by
self centered desires which readily translate into selfish gain at others' expense, and that
there is no magic which exempts public officers from this characteristic. Streeten (1993)
agrees with the reality of public officials serving their own interests, but adds that they at the
same time want to be seen as moral agents advocating public interest. Consequently, the
selfishness results in oppression by the government or in tyranny, unless there is a check like
a constitution (Steinberger, 1981). Thus the oppressive experiences Sitio Basi residents were
put through as a result of meeting a selfish desire by a public official. Specifically in the case
of Chrysalis Academy extending its area to cover the creek and the lot occupied by some
residents, Freire (1970) explains that the oppressor has the tendency to make everything
around him or her such as land and property an object of its domination (p. 58), and this
inclination to have more results in the oppressed having less or having nothing. For them, to
be is to have and to be the class of the haves (p. 58).

Apart from expanding the school premises as a justification for initiating oppressive
efforts against people like Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia according to their own lens, an attitudinal
reason on the part of who they label as the oppressors also emerged from the in-depth
interviews. Zaldy imagines how residents fare in the eyes of the owners and administrators of
Chrysalis Academy:

Pagagandahin daw po nila yung sa may lugar namin. Kasi po

yung katapat namin ay TESDA Chrysalis Academy na po. Yung
likod namin bakod na po ng Chrysalis Academy.Yung harapan
namin, bakanteng lote din, TESDA College. Gusto po nila
siguro ay pagpasok ng estudyante ay mawala yung mga
squatter kasi pangit kami sa paningin nila.
They said they would fix and improve our area. For we are
situated across TESDA Chrysalis Academy. The back of our
house is already the school's fences. Then in front of our house,
we have a vacant lot, TESDA College. Maybe they wanted to
remove the squatters' area before the school opens, since we
are an eyesore.

55

When asked if there is oppression going on amidst the creek issue, Placido describes
its intensity and goes to the extent of measuring people like him against who he believes is
the oppressor.

Malaking-malaki at yung pwersang ginamit nila e lumawak

nang lumawak kahit na maliit na baga-- maliit lang kaming
kalaban niya.
Definitely a big one. And they made use of greater forces even
though it was just a small iss-- we are just small competition.

When Chrysalis Academy administration and the offices of barangay and

municipality did not participate in the dialogues requested by Sitio Basi residents, Placido
claims the reason lies in how the concerned institutions perceive people like him.

Maari kasing kaya di sila dumadalo dahil sa inaakala nila na

you're just a small fry kaya di ka nila iniintindi.
We can probably say that the reason they do not attend our
meetings is that they think we are just a small fry who is not
worthy of their attention.

Meanwhile, Lilia uses a picturesque metaphor for how she claims the school, the
Gorospes, and some rich private citizens view ordinary community members like her who
have established their lives right outside the border of Chrysalis Academy a perception
which she defends her own people against.

LILIA: Ay number one talaga yang aming pinaglalaban na

creek. Kasi sabi nga nila kami'y sore to the eye.
(It is definitely because of the creek that we are fighting
for. Since according to them, we are an eyesore.)
RESEARCHER: Sino pong nagsabi nun, Tita?
(Who said that?)
56

LILIA: Ang mga Gorospe. Chrysalis Academy. Na kahit

naman yung iba ring kapitbahay naming mayayaman matagal
na kaming pini-petition dito na paalisin kasi sore to the eye
nga daw kami sa kanilang komunidad. Pero bagama't kami'y
pangit sa paningin, masasabi ko naman na hindi kami
perwisyo sa lansangan. At kahit kailan na magsabi ditong
residente, wala kaming pinerwisyo, walang inaway sa kanila,
walang, wala silang mairereklamo sa mga tao dito na
sasabihin nila na kinursunada sila, yung mga anak nila
binastos, wala naman. At wala namang masasabing ninakawan
sila, ganun. Ah, kami mahirap pero di kami ganung
kapitbahay. Sabi ko, kami mababait, tahimik. Kung ano ang
gusto nila, kung anong maitutulong namin, tutulong kami. At
kalimitan, kami ang gumagawa dito ng kagaya ng paglilinis ng
kalsada, kung may mga baha, kami nangunguna sa paglilinis.
(The Gorospes. Chrysalis Academy. But even some of
our rich neighbors have been petitioning us out of the
community because we are an eyesore. However, I can
say that even though we are not the best things to look
at, we are in no way a hazard to the community. You
can ask anyone of the residents, none of us have
inconvenienced them in any way, none of us have not
picked fights with them, none, there will be no person
to complain about, no one who harasses their children,
really no one. And no one can say that they have been
burglarized. Ah, yes we are poor but we are not that
kind of neighbors. Like I said, we are good and quiet
neighbors. If they want something, if they want our
help, we would help them. And most of the time, it is us
who do the work like cleaning the streets when there is
a flood.)
RESEARCHER: Oho.
(Uh huh.)
LILIA: E ang reyalidad kasi, di mo naman mapapahawak ng
pala ang mga nag-oopisina e. Kaya itong mahihirap din na
kapitbahay nila ang gagawa nun para sa aming lugar. Yun ang
katotohanan doon.
(Because in reality, those who work in offices are
unable to hold shovels. It is the poor neighbors that
would do that for their community. That is the truth.)

57

This marginalizing attitude toward the oppressed is explained by Paulo Freires

Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970). The Brazilian educator-activist states that on the part of
the oppressors, human beings refers only to themselves; other people are things (p. 57,
as cited in Dumlao, n.d.). He adds that the oppressors acknowledge only their right to live in
peace and to survival, and merely concede that of the oppressed simply because the
existence of the oppressed is necessary to their own existence (p. 58). Furthermore, the
oppressors tendency to marginalize everything around him or her as an object of its
domination and at its disposal (p. 58.) even includes people.

Attributes of oppression emerge to sustain the oppressive phenomena

Kucukaydin (2008) finds in his study of counter-learning under oppressive situations

that oppression inevitably produces components aimed at maintaining it. He says that these
components are felt but are sometimes difficult to be identified. From the narratives of
Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia, certain attributes of oppression involving the project to cover the
Sitio Basi creek and the consequences of the residents protest against it emerge and are
discussed one by one below. At some instances, the attributes are not mutually exclusive to
one another and indeed can overlap following the dynamic nature of oppression.

Oppression casts in its phenomenon a powerful oppressor and a marginalized

oppressed

After the participants of this study confirmed that oppression indeed exists in Sitio
Basi due to the construction at the creek by Chrysalis Academy, Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia
point to the same answer as to who they think the oppressor and oppressed are.

[PLACIDO] Ang nangdedehado ay unang-una yung ating

alkalde at ang mga nakaluklok sa puwesto na kanyang
nagagamit. Iyon ang mga maituturing na nangdedehado. At
ang nadedehado ay ang mga tao sa La Merced, sa komunidad,
sa paligid ng La Merced. Sila ang mga nadedehado. Sila ang
mga nagiging biktima.
58

(Those who treat us unfairly are, first and foremost, our

mayor and all the people who have positions in our
local government whom he can use at his disposal. I
can say that these people are treating us unfairly. And
those who are treated unfairly are the residents of La
Merced, in the community, in the surrounding areas of
La Merced. These people are treated unfairly. They are
the victims.)
[ZALDY] Una, alam naman natin kung sino kasi may-ari nun
diba? Una yung mayor nga natin dito na nakapwesto nga.
Syempre, kami yung naagrabyado, yung mga, mga nakatira
dun sa lugar na yun. Pero sa ngayon, OK na e. Ngayon na
lang, kami naagrabyado ni Katimbang e. Syempre nakakulong
kami e.
(First of all, we all know who owns the land right?
First, is the incumbent mayor. Of course we are the
ones being treated unfairly, the people who live in that
place. But for now, everything is OK. As of now,
Katimbang and I are the only ones being treated
unfairly. Naturally, since we are currently in prison)
[LILIA] Siguro palibasa ngayon lang kami nakaranas ng
naagrabyado kami, ay isa lang naman ang maituturing kong
nang-agrabyado sa amin, yan yung pamilyang Gorospe
ngayon na-- Yun lang naman kasi ang alam namin na ang
tanging dahilan at tanging may motibo para kami ganituhin
dahil ilang dekada-- Ilang dekada ba? Nanungkulan magmula
kay Salvi o magmula kung ilan pang mayor ng La Merced ay
di namin naranasan yung ganito na panggigipit. At sila lang
naman kasi ang may proyekto sa lugar na 'to para magkaroon
ng dahilan kung bakit kami dapat, dapat i-harass ng ganito
katindi. At kami naman ang naaagrabyado, kami mga residente
dito sa Sitio Basi. Dahil kung matutuloy nga at sila e mananalo
sa pagde-demolish na balak dito sa lugar namin, kami ang
unang-unang agrabyado talaga.
(Maybe it's because this is the first time we ever felt
being treated unfairly, thus I can only single out these
people for treating us unfairly, these are the Gorospes
who now-- That is the only reason and they are the only
people who have motives to do this to us, because it has
been deca-- How many decades has it been? From the
time Salvi held office or even before that, many mayors
59

have already served La Merced but we never

experienced this kind of unjust treatment. Besides, they
are the only people who currently have projects in our
community thus having the motives to harass us at this
level. And we are the ones being treated unfairly, we,
residents of Sitio Basi. Since if ever they win this battle
and continue to demolish our area, we will be the first
and foremost to be affected and aggrieved by the
situation)
All three research participants identify the mayor as the main oppressor in the Sitio
Basi creek issue. Nevertheless, they gave different shades of the same answer. Placido also
blames the individuals occupying positions in the town administration that he claims the
mayor uses for personal gain. As to who are the oppressed, he even goes beyond Sitio Basi
residents (which is the answer of Zaldy and Lilia) to include the entire townsfolk and those
who live in the towns vicinity. This shows that Placidos perspective of the oppression in
Sitio Basi is contextualized in the entire municipality. He believes that the same force that
marginalizes the people in his neighborhood can also do the same to those who are outside of
it, provided this force possesses a sufficient arsenal of power, privilege, wealth, and human
connections to carry out an oppressive, self-serving agenda. He believes that Mayor Gorospe
is armed with such arsenal.

Meanwhile, Lilia does not directly refer to the town leader as the oppressor, but to his
entire family. She probably recognizes that the oppressive agency is more of collective (in
this case, familial) than individual. Placidos wife supposes that the mayors selfish interests
can be rooted from those of his family, who is headed by former CMBP chair Sixto Gorospe.
Sixto himself carries his own share of selfish reputation in the family, after being charged by
CMBP with graft for allegedly misappropriating P26.7 million in public funds to produce
[a] movie in 2008 (ND, 2011) and siphoning off some P186 million from its [CMBPs]
funds allegedly to aid the election bid of his daughters party-list group (ND, 2011), among
other allegations.

60

The oppressors-oppressed distinction or dominant-dominated opposition is a widely

known political argument dichotomizing these two groups of people based on their
asymmetrical power relations. An early use of this distinction is provided by Hegel (1802) in
his political writing The German Constitution. He says, The Catholics had been in the
position of oppressors, and the Protestants of the oppressed. Many authors including Engels,
Marx, Lenin, and Gramsci have subscribed to this argument and applied it to various
contexts. So has Freire (1970) who differentiated the oppressor and the oppressed, two
statuses in an unjust society, in The Pedagogy of the Oppressed. One of the distinctions that
Freire (1970, as cited in Hanna, Talley, & Guindon, 2000) makes between these two groups
of people is that in dominant cultures, the oppressed are being silenced through education
and other institutions as the oppressors define and control their roles and identities.

Oppression exerts force to dominate the oppressed

In pursuing a complaint against Chrysalis Academy concerning the creek issue,

Placido first consulted the local office of the environmental agency (DENR) to confirm if the
school indeed violates any law protecting the creek. He gives a more profound reason for
approaching the agency:

Sapagkat tinitiyak ko na hindi magiging mabuti ang usapan

kung sila [Chrysalis Academy administration] at kami lamang
ang mag-uusap. Tinitiyak kong kami ay tatapakan lamang ng
kanilang pwersa.
(Because if it was just our party and their party [Chrysalis
Academy administration] with no one to stand in the middle, I
assure you that that meeting will not go well. These powerful
and influential people would just step on us.)

Had Sitio Basi residents not sought help from an agency that would confirm and
further communicate their grievance regarding the creek construction, Placido anticipates the
oppressor to use force in order to keep them from doing so. When asked if he thinks there is

61

oppression in the creek issue, Placido describes its immensity and the force the oppressor has
already wielded against them.

Malaking-malaki at yung pwersang ginamit nila e lumawak ng

lumawak kahit na maliit na baga-- maliit lang kaming kalaban
niya. Lumawak nang lumawak.Marami na rin siyang ginamit
na tao. Marami siyang inabala, ginamit. Marami rin siyang
perang tinapon para, para sa amin. Kasi nung una, thumbtacks
lang kaming tinatapakan niya. Nung nagsama-sama na kami,
pako na, e gumamit na siya ng maraming tao.
(Very immense and the force they have wielded has spread
more and more, even if were just small adversaries to them. It
has spread more and more. He already used a lot of people. He
inconvenienced a lot of people, used them. And he also wasted
a lot of money on, on us. In the beginning, we are just
thumbtacks that he can easily step on. However, when we all
joined forces, we became nails, thus probing him to use more
people.)

Exerting force to dominate the oppressed boosts the oppressive phenomena in that
they are not merely subjugated further by the force but the demonstration of the force itself
instils fear and intimidation in their psyche. This inculcation could paralyze them from freely
making their own choices in life, which includes maximizing their potential and resisting the
oppression. This paralysis is a form of powerlessness, which for Young (2004) is a face of
oppression characterized by the domination of the powerless by a ruling class. What it takes
to subjugate a group of people is to utilize the accumulating resources of the oppressor at his
or her disposal, the majority of which could have been obtained at the expense of the havenots, and take advantage of the unequal power relations in their favor.

Oppression silences the oppressed

Placido recounts what happened after the period of expressing dissent to the
administration of Chrysalis Academy with regards to the construction at the creek:

62

Kaya sila gumawa ng malaking hakbang. Mali nga lang ang

hakbang na ginawa nila. Nagdesisyon sila ng di mabuti.
Kagaya ng ginawa nilang desisyon na matapos silang
mabulabog, dapat niyo patahimikin, na ikinulong kami.
Gumamit sila ng kapulisan. Aminado naman yung mga pulis
dahil sa kahit naman ganun kawalang hiya yang mga pulis ay
may konsensya rin naman sinabi nila nang harapan sa amin
na, Pasensya na kayo, nautusan lang kami.
(That's the reason they took a huge step. Although the step they
made was wrong. They made the wrong decision. Just like how
they decided that those who disturbed them should be silenced,
they put us in prison. They used the power of the police. Even
the police know that what they were doing was wrong because
even though these police officers are really shameless, they still
have their conscience and they told us themselves, We hope
you understand, we are just following orders.)

Placido believes that his imprisonment with Zaldy was a consequence of leading the
protest against covering the creek by Chrysalis Academy. Aside from claiming that the arrest
for drug trafficking charges was a frame-up, Placido says that detainment has been the
oppressors way to repress the protest and silence their voices. One of the cultural
components identified by Kucukaydin (2008) which are fed upon by oppression is the
culture of silence. Externally imposed and accomplished by the oppressor, this culture is
characterized by perceiving reality in certain ways and accepting certain given
characteristics as they are (p. 267). The culture of silence dictates an individual what to say
or not to say, what to do or not to do, what to wear or not to wear, even how to sit and stand
up and walk on the street (ibid.).

Despite efforts by the oppressed to express their resistance against what they see as
unjust acts, the oppressor could utilize his or her arsenal of power, privileges, properties,
wealth, and other resources even the apparatus of the state (in this case, the law and the
police) to limit the choices and actions of dissenting parties and silence their sentiments.
This way, process of oppression is maintained.

63

Oppression entails the exploitation of human and financial resources

Any project, concrete or abstract, requires resources without which accomplishing it

is impossible, just as a system without components is a dead one and a recipe without
ingredients does not exist. The haves possess a wealth of resources they could invariably use
at their disposal to meet a selfish end. Such resources could be human and financial. Human
resources include a network of allies the oppressor can ask cooperation from and
subordinates he or she could mobilize to successfully carry out the oppressive project.
Financial resources, on the other hand, are the wealth the oppressor accumulates
incrementally at the expense of those having less and less in life. Likewise, the mayor of La
Merced, whom Placido, Zaldy , and Lilia refer to as the oppressor in the creek issue, has the
political power to order directly or not the police to arrest powerless people like Sitio
Basi residents who protest against the school owned by his family, an infamously wealthy
one at that. Knowing he was headed for the police station, Zaldy did not expect where he
would be taken by the police vehicle temporarily after he was arrested on January 2011:

'Tas pinasok pa ko sa loob ng Chrysalis Academy para di nga

ko masundan ng mga ninong ko, ng mga, yan ng mga asawa
ko, nanay ko, kasi hinahabol na ko, bakit kung anong
kasalanan ko e. Bakit nga ko hinuhuli e. Pinosasan na ka'gad
ako e. Di sila nagsasalita. Mga pulis walang sinasabi.
(They even led me inside Chrysalis Academy to stop my
godfather, my wife and my mother from following me, because
they really ran after me, they wanted to know what I did
wrong. Why am I being arrested? They already handcuffed me.
No one was explaining anything. The police were not telling
me anything.)

Lilia describes the extent of the mayors influence which allows for accomplishing
public and private ends, including the alleged illegal and oppressive construction of cover on
the Sitio Basi creek.

64

siya ay mayor, kaya ma-impluwensiya at kaya niyang gawin

lahat. Paikutin lahat ng pangyayari. Kaya niyang hawakan
lahat ang departamento ng La Merced, dahil alam naman
nating siya ang nakaupong mayor ngayon. Maging 'yang
sangay ng DENR La Merced ay kayang-kaya nila yang-- Sabi
nga nila ay nag-sanction lang sila ng P50,000 para dun sa
culvert na itinayo nila.
(...he is the Mayor, that is why he holds a lot of influence and
he can do everything. He can twist every story. He holds power
on every department of La Merced since he is the incumbent
mayor. Even DENR, he can easily-- That's why they stated that
they just paid the sanction of P50,000 for the culvert that they
built.)

To Placido, it was impossible that someone who does not have the financial and
human arsenal could pull off an oppressive agenda. He says of the mayor:

Marami na rin siyang ginamit na tao. Marami siyang inabala,

ginamit. Marami rin siyang perang tinapon para, para sa
amin. Kasi nung una, thumbtacks lang kaming tinatapakan
niya. Nung nagsama-sama na kami, pako na, e gumamit na
siya ng maraming tao.
(He already used a lot of people. He inconvenienced a lot of
people, used them. And he also wasted a lot of money on, on
us. In the beginning, we are just thumbtacks that he could
easily step on. However, when we all joined forces, we became
nails, thus probing him to use more people.)

It can also be noted from the above statement that the further utilization of the
oppressors resources (in this case, human resources) is contingent on the level of agency the
oppressed residents have demonstrated in their resistance. When Placido saw the
transformation of Sitio Basi residents from individual thumbtacks into a collective nail as a
result of their assembly, the oppressor might have perceived this as a threat and therefore
mobilized more people at his disposal to maintain his agenda.

65

Oppression mars the image of a community

Before narratives pertaining to this finding are presented, a brief discussion of the
background of La Merced, particularly how its socio-political dynamics have changed over
the years, is crucial. Sixty-three kilometres south of Manila, La Merced is a first class urban
municipality in Camagay nestled at the foothills of Mt. Criselda and along the shorelines of
Camagay de Bay, and bound by another town and a city (Official Website of La Merced,
n.d.; ND, 2011). Home to a prestigious university (named in this study as HEU) and an
international institute, the town prides itself in its famous buko pie, fresh carabao milk
products, and natural hot spring resorts (ND, 2011). Born in the town in 1989 and staying
there up to the present, I have always pictured La Merced as a simple and peaceful place
which a tourist or a temporary resident like an HEU student or professor would not find
difficult to treat as a second home. The downtown is a crossing along which lie a Roman
Catholic church, town malls, the public market, fast food chains, hospitals, and other
establishments like pharmacies, beauty salons, discount stores, and computer shops. Traffic
is usually heavy in this central part of the town because the national highway passes through
it. The towns official website (n.d.) reports that La Merced covers 5,650 hectares
constituting 14 villages. In 2007, it has a population close to 100,000 (National Statistics
Office, 2010). To set further the Sitio Basi case study in the context of La Merced especially
its past, I have described in a published article (2012) some aspects of my growing up in the
town:

My dad told me more than once that he used to take me to the

shore of Camagay Lake (which is still part of the town) before
dawn when I was a baby, so I could take in the breeze which is
believed to invigorate a young soul.
Growing up in La Merced meant being raised in simplicity. As
a child I ran errands for my mom, going out to a retail store to
buy a kilo of rice or shampoo or what have you. On weekends,
my family would walk to my aunts place and sleep over. That
street is called Daang Damuhan, and indeed we passed through
a grassland with carabaos grazing. On weekdays, I would

66

excitedly walk back home from school to watch my favorite

anim.
I didnt necessarily like being outdoors, however, because I
was (and am still) a TV person and a bookworm. But when two
malls rose, followed by the mushrooming of second-handclothes and discount stores, walking around La Merced
appealed to me more. During such times, which was about a
decade ago, whenever I had to cross the main roads downtown,
I would first glance around the establishments, the people, and
the jeepneys, and appreciate how my town maintained its
simplicity and quaintness despite having embraced some
modern changes.

After serving as mayor of La Merced for three consecutive terms, Antonio Salvi was
elected vice governor of the province of Camagay in 2010, giving way to the then Chrysalis
Academy Managing Director Lance Gorospe as the next leader of the town. Gorospes
campaign for the mayoral race elicited much controversy for several reasons. For one, ND
(2011) reports that Felix Aragon (not his real name), incumbent chair of the state-run
institution CMBP, says his predecessor, Lances father Sixto Gorospe, gave vehicles and
financial aids to the La Merced government (P5 million) and organizations of residents (P5
million) even after Lance had started his electoral campaign. Aragon considers this a
conflict of interest. ND (2010) adds more reports on this controversial campaign. She
writes of allegations that Sixto had diverted 49 metric tons of rice allocated for typhoon
victims to bolster his political bid and that of his brother Kenneth (not his real name), who
eventually lost the mayoral race in a highly modern city. Mayor Gorospe denies the
allegation, saying it is politically motivated, but residents could attest to his doling out of the
staple and even boxes of apples even before the election campaign. Gorospe defends that his
family business like the Chrysalis Academy campuses and a pest control company financed
the campaign.

Placido believes that the entrance of what he calls mga dayuhan or foreigners into the
political landscape of La Merced has tainted the towns image due to the vote buying
incidents allegedly orchestrated by the Gorospes during the 2010 electoral campaign.

67

Ang dating minsan pag narinig mo ang La Merced ay lugar

ng matatalinong tao, e napalitan na ngayon ng lugar ng
nabibiling tao na dahil sa ilang dayuhang dumating sa La
Merced. Nakakalungkot yun. Iilang tao bumura sa kasaysayan
ng La Merced. Pwede pa makabangon ang taga-La Merced
kung sa maikising panahon lang sila mananatili rito. Dapat e
makagawa ng hakbang ang mga taga-La Merced na itigil na
ang pagtangkilik sa ganyang klase ng mga tao. O kung sa
laganap ang kahirapan kaya kapag sila'y may haing mga pera,
ibinibili ng boto, nadadaya [n]ung mga dayuhang taga-La
Merced.
(Before, when you hear about the La Merced, it is a place of
intelligent people, but now it is known for people you can
easily bribe just because of some outsiders who came to this
town. It's sad. Just a number of people wiped away the history
of La Merced. But residents of La Merced can rise up from this
predicament if the outsiders will only stay here for a short
while. Residents of La Merced should come up with ways to
stop supporting these kinds of people. In the places where
poverty is at its worst, these people are ready to throw their
money and bribe them for some votes, these outsiders are able
to deceive the residents of La Merced.)

Still, he offers optimism on bringing back the original image of the town as long as
the foreigners leave La Merced soon and the native residents stop patronizing them.
Placido alludes to two legends that depict this so-called invasion in the town by what he
considers as foreign agents.

pumangit ang La Merced sapagkat may mga dumating na

dayuhan na may dalang mansanas. Kumbaga para silang mga,
mga demonyo o hudas na may dalang mansanas para tuksuhin
ang mga nanahimik sa La Merced. In fact, nasa hula nga daw
yan ng ano e, ng Criselda na maraming darating ditong
dayuhan at mapapalayas pa ang mga likas na taga-La Merced.
Nangyayari na ito, katulad halimbawa nang may dumating na
dayo, sila na ngayon ang namumuno at sinabi na ang mga
taga-La Merced ay mukhang pera. Napakadaling bilhin.
(...La Merced lost its beauty when these outsiders started
coming in bearing apples. It was like they were, were the Devil
or Judas with their apples ready to tempt the people living
68

peacefully in La Merced. In fact, they even said that this event

was foretold by, by Criselda, that many outsiders would come
here and drive out the real residents of La Merced. It really did
happen now, just like how these outsiders came and now rule
our town, even saying that residents of La Merced are suckers
for money. Very easy to bribe.)

What could be noticed in the text above is that the first legend is a universal one for it
derives from the Judeo-Christian narrative while the second is endemic to La Merced.
Legendary narratives, whether reflective of a worldview or peculiar to a small town, serve
here as a metaphor (Daiute & Lightfoot, 2004) to illustrate a situation of oppression. For the
story of the fall of (wo)man in the Garden of Eden, the serpent deceived Adam and Eve into
eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, an act which drove them
from the sanctuary. Meanwhile, for Placidos allusion to the legend of Mt. Criselda, I did not
find among available stories of Criselda one which tells of foreigners invading La Merced
and driving away its natives. The closest one among them would be the story of greedy
villagers invading Criseldas garden to confirm if her other plants were truly gold, the sight
of which drove away Criselda up the mountain in distress for eternity. Placido was able to
communicate more effectively his narratives of oppression on a personal and community
level by incorporating pertinent universal and local narratives into the discourse. His
narrative has shown how an oppressive act of invading a once-decent town cannot only mar
its image but also its socio-political landscape.

Oppression deprives the oppressed of their basic rights

Placido discloses how much he has lost in life as a result of fighting for the creek and
the residents.

dehadong dehado dahil malaking bagay na ang nawala sa

buhay ko. Yung mahigit isang taon kang mabilanggoDito,
para kang asoYung magising ka na mabuhay ka, swerte mo
na. Malaki ang nawawala. Malaki ang pagkaka-agrabyado.
Ako yung naagrabyado. Sila yung nang-aagrabyado. Na sana
69

huwag ng madagdagan pa katulad ko maselang bahagi pala

talaga ng buhay ang pagpili ng mga pinuno dahil marami
silang maaring kunin na hindi natin inaakalang kanilang pagiinteresan, na mahalaga pala sa atin.
(...the odds are really not in our favor because I already lost a
lot in my life. My imprisonment for over a year... In here, you
are like a dog... The fact that you wake up alive, you can
already consider yourself lucky. A lot will be lost. There is a
huge injustice. I am not treated fairly. They are not treating me
fairly. I hope no one falls victim again... Choosing our leaders
is really an important part of life because they can actually
claim something of ours that we would have never thought they
would find interest in, something that is actually important to
us.)

Placido values the electoral process to the extent that it has become a crucial aspect of
his personal life. He sees this democratic procedure as opportunity to choose leaders who are
not likely to possess things at the expense of his or her constituents, even things which they
thought at first are not important to them. Placido is referring here to the creek a body of
water that indeed lies beyond the vicinity of the residents private homes but could flood
them anytime during heavy rains. He claims this has been the case since Chrysalis Academy
started to cover the creek on December 2010.

Lilia recounts that on the same month, the school forbade its employees to patronize
eateries right outside its premises, including that of the Katimbangs. She believes this is
harassment by the Gorospes which was followed by a series of visits by people from the
Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to inspect the creek. She says she was
rudely asked by these people why residents like her complain against the construction at the
creek. Placidos wife could not help but confront the village leader, Tony Parducho an ally
of Mayor Gorospe about the oppression her family goes through which has deprived them
of their basic rights:

Unang pang-aagrabyado na yung ikulong mo yung walang

kasalanan sa ganung pamamaraan. Pangalawa, pangaagrabyado, patayin mo ang ikinabubuhay ng isang tao. Para
70

mo na ring isang pamilya ang pinatay mo nun eKung sa

pang-aagrabyado ay wala ng-- magkabilang-balikat na ang
ibinigay nila sa akin. Kaya sabi ko nga noon kay Kapitan,
Kapitan patayin niyo na lang kaya kami. Kasi pinakulong niyo
na yung asawa ko, tatanggalan niyo pa ko ng bahay, ay
patayin niyo na lang kami. Sabi ko, Kasi lahat na tinanggal
niyo e. Ano pang gusto niyong matira sa amin? Sabi kong
ganun. Wala siyang maisagot sa amin.
(The first evidence of their unfair treatment was the fact that
they had us imprisoned when we are innocent. The second
evidence of their unfair treatment, the fact that they quashed
our source of living. It is almost like you killed a family. If it is
unfair treatment, there is no-- They already gave me weights on
both my shoulders. In the past, I even resorted to saying
(Barangay) Captain, why don't you just kill us? You already
imprisoned my husband and then you want to demolish our
house, just kill us already. I added :You already took
everything from us. There is nothing left for us, is there? That
is what I said. He couldnt give us an answer.)

One can infer from this statement of Lilia that losing the important things in her
family, such as her detained husband, the house, and their means of livelihood, which for her
is an act of oppression, is almost tantamount to being deprived of life itself. The more things
are taken away from the oppressed, the more they become powerless. Consequently, the
oppressor gains more power and the oppressive project is sustained.

Freire (1970) was cited earlier to have said that the tendency of the oppressor to
possess more results in the oppressed having less or having nothing. For them, to be is to
have and to be the class of the haves (p. 58). But in this context, Freire seems to imply that
the phenomenon of the have-nots losing what little they have is a product of the conscious
desire of the haves to own more, if not conscious, then a desire that springs from the selfish
nature of (wo)man (Hurst, 1974). What is overlooked is that the gradual emptying of the
material and abstract possessions of the oppressed is not only due to direct, conscious
decisions by the oppressor but also because of indirect, unanticipated repercussions of such
decisions. For instance, in the imprisonment of Placido and Zaldy on what they claim as
false charges orchestrated by the mayor, which deprived them of freedom for over a year at
71

the time of writing this manuscript, neither the side of the oppressor nor the oppressed knows
the date of release of the two men, provided the court acquits them. The trial is still ongoing
after several rescheduling of the court hearings, and no one knows when the protest leaders
of the Sitio Basi creek issue would be lifted from the suffering of confinement.

Oppression persists to accomplish its end

When the local office of DENR conducted an inspection of the Sitio Basi creek after
the residents consulted with them on the matter, Dr. Mario Montejo (not his real name),
Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer, wrote an official letter to the
Managing Director of Chrysalis Academy, Mayor Gorospe. Dated December 7, 2010, it
reads:

This has reference to the letter complaint of the So. [Sitio] Basi
Residents Association, Brgy. Tanikala, La Merced, regarding
the construction of a building owned by Chrysalis Academy on
top of the creek which obstruct or impede the free passage of
water inside the subdivision. Consequently this will cause
flooding in the area.
In this connection, you are advised to temporarily stop from
introducing any development in top of the creek and in the
creek such time that the above issues and concerns shall have
been resolved and that the necessary permits from the
concerned government agencies shall have been secured.

In spite of an official notice from the local DENR office to suspend the construction,
all three research participants say it went on nevertheless.

[PLACIDO] Pinatitigil subalit ayaw tumigil ng Chrysalis

Academy. Hanggang ngayon ay tinuloy nila, hanggang ngayon
makikita niyo kung...papaano ang paglapastangan ng
Chrysalis Academy sa utos ng DENR na itigil ang kanilang
pagsasara. At makikita mo naman ito e, common sense lang
ang gagamitin mo, makikita mo, talagang kikilabutan ka.
72

(They have orders to stop, but Chrysalis Academy did

not stop. Even today, they are continuing their project;
you can still see... how Chrysalis Academy continues to
violate orders from DENR to stop covering the creek.
And you can really see this, you just have to use your
common sense and you will see it, you will be
appalled.)
[ZALDY] Tumututol kaming mga taga-dun kasi ang magiging
cost nga nun, ano, yung pagbaha, pero tinutuloy pa rin nila.
(We, residents, are really against it because eventually
it will cause flooding in our area, but they continued
with that project.)
[LILIA] ang sabi [ni Placido sa Administrator ng Chrysalis
Academy] ay Bakit ninyo pinagpapatuloy pa rin yung
construction ninyo, e samantalang meron na kayong TRO
galing DENR? Ah, itinatanggi niya na wala daw construction
na ginagawa hanggang sa nagkainitan sila sa telepono. Hindi
na siya sinasagot kapag tinatawagan ng mister ko.
(...he said [Placido to the Administrator of Chrysalis
Academy], Why are you still going through your
construction when you already received a TRO from
DENR? Ah, but they kept on insisting that no
construction was being made until their phone
conversation became heated. Since then, they refuse to
answer my husband's phone calls)

Based on the condition set by Dr. Montejo that the concerns of Sitio Basi residents
must be resolved first before his office could implicitly allow for the continuance of the
construction at the creek, Chrysalis Academy administration can claim that the issue has been
settled after it paid P50,000 for environmental penalty according to Lilia. Still, in the lens of
the residents, their concerns have never been addressed; in the first place, the school
administration denies the very construction on top of the creek. In fact, they think the issue
was exacerbated due to the imprisonment of Placido and Zaldy.

Even if the argument of the residents against the construction was legitimized by the
provincial DENR, and was confirmed by Dr. Segunda Amor (not her real name), Chief of the

73

Ecosystems Research and Development Division in the regional DENR office (personal
communication, April 1, 2012), the project which has oppressed both a body of water (in a
figurative sense) and a community of poor residents was carried on. To these people, the
reality that the oppressive agenda continues unabated could either further marginalize them
or serve as the last straw to fight back. Both options can be explained by the principle of
social inertia: the oppressed whether at rest or in motion could either continue to remain so in
oppression or allow a force to act upon it for emancipation.

This notion of social inertia was derived from the laws of physics. Newtons First
Law of Motion (1687, as cited in Holzner, 2006), commonly known as the law of inertia,
states that an object at rest or in motion along a straight line will remain so unless it is acted
upon by an external force. Eventually, this physical law has been applied in the context of
psychology and sociology to refer to social inertia the resistance of society to
nonconformist and unacceptable ideas (Brown, 2008). To illustrate this, Brown observes that
despite the Internet revolutionizing the way individuals express their opinion, those who
voice eccentric ideas are ostracized by the dominant group. This is because a popular
discourse, culture, habit, and thinking, among others, have been set in motion a bandwagon
of inertia on which the majority has jumped. Similarly, oppression, as a constant in society
(Prilleltensky and Gonick, 1996), moves in a straight line in the social dynamics as it
accomplishes its agenda to serve the oppressor at the expense of the oppressed.

Unlike in physical inertia, the force to change the current state need not be external,
for as apparent in the next thing the Sitio Basi residents did after the supposedly inaction of
Chrysalis Academy, the force came from within the oppressed group.

The force was a resisting one.

74

Communicating Resistance

How Resistance is Communicated

In communicating their resistance against the project of Chrysalis Academy that

would cover the creek in their community, Sitio Sipit residents performed a step-by-step
procedure of methods which are nonviolent in nature.

Communicating resistance begins with organizing community meetings within

the oppressed groupto discuss the oppressive issue

Placido recounts that resisting against the construction on top of the Sitio Basi creek
had its beginnings from a series of meetings among the residents which concerned their
areas worsening flooding.

Ah nagsimula na magkaroon ng pulong-pulong na yan dahil

dun nung nakakaramdam na sila ng, kami, nakakaramdam na
kami ng panganib dahil sa kaunting ambon lang, kaunting ulan
ay lumalaki yung i-- yung tubig. So naobserbahan ng bawat
residente na Aba delikado nga tayo! Bakit tinatakpan [ang
creek]? So bilang residente, syempre kami-kami concerned sa
bawat isa kaya nagkaroon ng pagpupulong. At: sa:: sa
pagpupulong na yun, lumabas ang mga daing na, na::,
lumabas ang nga leakage na talagang gusto kaming paalisin
ng Chrysalis Academy para sa kanilang pagpapalawak ng
lugar.
(Ah meetings like that have started because they, we, began to
sense some danger because with just drizzle, with just light
rain, floodwater gets already big. So every resident observed,
We might be in danger! Why is the creek being covered? So
as a resident, of course we are concerned with one another
thats why we held meetings. And: in:: in the meetings, what
turned out were grievances that, that::, leaks came out that
Chrysalis Academy really wanted to demolish us so that they
could expand its premises.)

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Placidos description of these meetings initiated by himself point to some features of

Habermas ideal speech situation. Jrgen Habermas theory of communicative action,
specifically his ideal speech situation (Habermas, 1984, as cited in Martin, 1996) can be
applied to nonviolent resistance against oppression. This ideal speech situation is made
possible by the ability of every individual to communicate, to engage in dialogue, and to
arrive at an inter-subjective agreement (instead of an individually sought truth in nature).
Simply put, Habermas (1984) believes that truth is attained by rational discussion without
repression.

Likewise, assembling the Sitio Basi residents to discuss community concerns builds
on the assumption that each of them has the ability to communicate and to engage in
dialogue. Arriving at an inter-subjective agreement was not challenging either because the
people were exposed to the same community problem (i.e. the worsening flood due to the
construction at the creek) and they were concerned about one anothers welfare. Neighbors
who also regard the interests of one another besides their personal interests can make
decisions and reach agreements that would put first the interest of the community. Further,
the meeting of such people, generally speaking, is better immunised against repression and
inequality in a special way (Habermas, 1984, p. 25).

Habermas critical theory, which includes the concept of ideal speech situation, is a
foundation of critical constructivism. As mentioned in the introductory chapter, critical
constructivism is part of the framework of this study (the other part being Marcuses critical
theory, particularly his concept of the one-dimensional [wo]man and society). Therefore,
Habermasian critical theory aids in looking at the phenomenon being studied in this research
from the intended theoretical framework. Meanwhile, critical constructivism is originally
contextualized in the field of education, particularly classroom teaching and learning, for it
aims to identify and reject disempowering cultural myths present in todays education
systems (Taylor 1996, as cited in Dougiamas, 1998). Still, I recast critical constructivism in
the context of the emancipatory meetings among Sitio Basi residents who unwittingly
adopted some features of Habermas ideal speech situation. For one, the said cultural myths

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in the education field share similarities with the dominant myths that must have prevailed in
a poor community like Sitio Basi. The rationalist myth of cold reason treating knowledge
as an external and objective truth (ibid.) transmitted to students by the teacher is tantamount
to the myth that solutions to resist oppression can only come from people outside the
oppressed group which constitute the middle class a group held to be more intellectual and
better at decision making. This myth was dispelled by Sitio Basi residents under the
leadership of Placido who recognized that they themselves could problematize the worsening
flood caused by the construction at the creek, and do something about it. On the other hand,
the myth of hard control naturally considers the teacher as the controller in the classroom
and locks teachers and students into grossly asymmetrical power relationships designed to
reproduce (rather than challenge) the established culture (Taylor, 1996, p. 165). This is
similar to the social myth that naturally sees political, economic, social, and religious
authorities as the unchallenged controllers of society. Through the meetings emulating in
some ways Habermas ideal speech situation, Sitio Basi residents might have recognized by
then that if they wanted to address the issue regarding the creek, they must be prepared to
deal with the greatest political power in La Merced who also manages Chrysalis Academy
the mayor.

Communicating resistance then involves sending letters to concerned officials

and agencies, and requesting an appropriate agency to sit as a mediating
body between the oppressor and the oppressed

The series of meetings among residents in Sitio Basi concerning the newly
commenced project of Chrysalis Academy to cover the creek generated the following
conclusion: that the construction of a building on top of the creek would not only cover what
could be a storage of excess floodwater for the communitys safety but would also require
the residents houses built alongside it be taken down. Placido tells of the first two methods
the residents, under his leadership, carried out to express their concern on the matter.

una, bukod dun sa idinaan namin sa liham, pangalawa ay

idinaan namin sa DENR dahil sa kinakailangan may
mamagitan sa amin kung kami mag-uusap. Humingi kami ng
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dayalogo sa pam-- sa... minabuti ko na sa pamamagitan ng

DENR, sila ang maggigitna sa amin.
(...first, apart from submitting a formal letter, second, we also
asked the assistance of DENR to act as a mediating party if we
ever push through the meeting. We asked for a possible
dialogue with the people-in char-- with... I decided that DENR
should be our middle party.)

Lilia says that the very first petition letter signed by around 100 people in Sitio Basi
was sent to the barangay (village) council to request them to check if the ongoing
construction at the creek was indeed legal or not. Despite popular scepticism about the
construction, she says it was still important for them to consult with government officials to
resolve the community issue. The same letter was also mailed to Chrysalis Academy, the
provincial office of Camagay, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR), and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Martin (1996) states that communication is central to methods of nonviolent

resistance, and writing letters to concerned parties is one specific example. He broadly
categorized these methods into symbolic actions, non-cooperation, and intervention and
alternative institutions. Symbolic actions, which include writing letters, delivering speeches,
circulating leaflets, organizing vigils and conducting teach-ins, naturally communicate to
both opponents and supporters. Martin contends that writing a letter may seem ineffectual but
it could openly and influentially challenge a dictator. In the case of Sitio Basi residents, the
letter of petition they signed and sent to government officials and agencies must have caught
their attention, provided it truly ended up on the desks of the officials concerned and was
read by them. Nevertheless, only DENR heeded the residents petition. The officials
concerned may not necessarily be dictators, but if they were indeed openly and influentially
challenged by the letter according to Martin, then challenging them through such medium
proves insufficient to cause them to act. One may say that writing a letter as a symbolic
action of nonviolent resistance may well just be symbolic.

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Meanwhile, the response of DENR to the letter must have come across to the
residents as an affirmation of their appeals validity. Placido believes that DENR would be
an appropriate venue to discuss the creek issue with Chrysalis Academy administration and
the municipal and barangay offices. This role of DENR as a mediating entity exemplifies
Galtungs (1989) in-between group in his Great Chain of Nonviolence Hypothesis.
Galtung argues that social distance between the oppressor and the oppressed influences the
success of nonviolent action: an increased social distance could aggravate cruel repression
while a decreased one could allow for greater responsiveness on the part of the oppressor. To
bridge this gap, the in-between groups must be mobilized to communicate the concerns of the
oppressed to the oppressor, and to maintain social and human ties with both of them.
However, because of the non-cooperation of concerned agencies and officials in the planned
DENR dialogue, the environment agency failed to exist as an in-between group in the first
place. Moreover, when Placido asked the agency to order the dismantling of the illegal
construction at Sitio Basi creek, they said that only the local government could do that. To
which Placido replied, Papaano kung ang may violation ay local government? He could
think of two reasons why DENR fell short of the residents expectations with regards to
resisting an oppressive project.

Ang natatawa lamang ako ay bakit walang ngipin ang DENR

na ipatigil, dahil sila ay natatakot siguro o may iniiwasan sila
na pwersa na nagmumula sa may-ari ng Chrysalis Academy na
si Mayor Gorospe.
(I find it funny that DENR has no power to stop them, maybe
they are scared or they are avoiding a great influential power
that that the owner of Chrysalis Academy, Mayor Gorospe,
possesses.)

Looking at this reality, one could argue that Galtungs concept of an in-between
group might not necessarily bring closer the social distance between the oppressor and the
oppressed. In the case of the Sitio Basi creek issue, social distance might have narrowed only
in the sense that an official agency as DENR, after confirming the argument of the residents
and advising Chrysalis Academy administration to postpone the construction at the creek,

79

was able to instill the sentiments of the oppressed into the consciousness of the oppressors.
But because the construction continued and DENR took no further action, eliciting lasting
support for resistance from such an in-between group turned out to be a failed experiment.
Analyzing his text above, particularly the words natatakot (fearful) and iniiwasan
(avoiding), this kind of in-between group ends up in subjugation to a dominant political and
economic force that threatens the very thing the group is officially mandated to protect the
environment. For an in-between group to effectively diminish the social distance between the
oppressor and the oppressed, it is a sine qua non for the group to adopt a resisting and
rejecting attitude towards dominant groups, institutions, discourses, cultures, among others.

Communicating resistance proceeds on making the oppressive issue known

to the public by putting up a poster

Sitio Basi residents began their campaign through the usual communication channel
of a petition letter, which is also an example of Martins (1996) symbolic act. Still, only
DENR responded to the petition letter signed by around 100 residents of Sitio Basi, the one
agency which eventually disengaged itself from supporting the community purportedly in
fear of the Chrysalis Academy manager cum La Merced mayor. After the failure of writing a
letter and mobilizing an in-between group (which did not prove an effective one in the end),
Placido, with the aid of Zaldy, resorted to a bold move to express more explicitly a growing
community concern. Lilia describes what happened.

pina-tarpaulin [nina Placido at Zaldy] yung pinaka-TRO

letter ng DENR at yun na. Dun na nag-umpisa kasi kinabit nila
diyan sa may puno ng mangga dun sa unahan [ng Sitio Basi na
malapit sa Chrysalis Academy]May puno dun ng mangga sa
harap. Dun nila pinako yung pinaka-tarpaulin para mabasa ng
kahit sinong darating yung TRO na yunAng ginawa ng
Chrysalis Academy, tinanggal. Ang ginawa naman ng mister
ko nagpa-tarpaulin ulitAt kinabit ulit. Ang huling nagtanggal
ay ang mga pulis na, pulis ng La Merced.

(...they [Placido and Zaldy] printed DENR's TRO letter on a

tarpaulin poster and that's it. It started from there because they
80

put that poster on a mango tree in front [of Sitio Basi near
Chrysalis Academy]... There is mango tree out front. They
nailed the poster there so everyone can read that TRO... What
Chrysalis Academy did was remove that poster. My husband
retaliated by printing the same tarpaulin poster... and nailing it
to the same tree. The last people to remove it was already the
police, the La Merced police.)

Posting at a public place the tarpaulin of DENRs letter advising the school to
postpone its construction on top of the creek was not only an unusual and bold method to
express dissent but one which made the issue known to public. Such method might have
conveyed the message to the school officials that the residents would not give up on their
nonviolent campaign anytime soon and that they could resort to bolder ways of resistance. A
unique way of protest such as making a tarpaulin out of a letter and posting it must have
indicated that people like Placido can always reject not only what is dominant but also what
is the popular. Consequently, individuals better resist oppressive acts on the outside if they
first reject the dominant discourse, ideologies, and cultures which try to take root in their
minds. To Marcuse (1964), these are dominant values encroaching on the individuals most
private space (the inner dimension of the mind and the self).

Lilia recalls that the first tarpaulin was posted sometime on December 2010. A couple
of weeks after, on January 4, 2011, Placido Katimbang and Zaldy Fe were detained for drug
trafficking charges. As aforementioned several times, Placido denies the allegation and
attributes it to their leading the protest in Sitio Basis ecological risk issue.

pina-tarpaulin ko lang yung sulat ng DENR...E hindi ako

makakitang puno. Inutos ko kay Zaldy Fe. Paglagay niya,
napadaan yung secretary ng Chrysalis Academy, nakunan siya
ng picture, kaya nakasama siya sa problema. Dapat ako lang
talaga ang dudukutin.
(...what I did was print DENR's letter on a tarpaulin poster... I
wasn't able to find a tree then. I asked Zaldy Fe to do it for me.
While he was nailing it on a tree, a secretary form Chrysalis
Academy happened to pass by and took his picture, and that is

81

the reason why he got involved with this problem. It was

supposed to be just me.)

In resorting to a bold way of communicating resistance against the construction at the

creek by displaying DENRs letter in tarpaulin, Sitio Basi residents have applied Gandhis
(1927) concept of nonviolent resistance called satyagraha. In his autobiography The Story of
My Experiments with Truth (1927, as cited in Martin, 1996), Gandhi acknowledges the power
of truth and believes that such truth could communicate directly to the oppressors heart. He
coins and develops the term satyagraha which is loosely translated insistence on truth or
truth force to refer to his notion of nonviolent resistance. Gandhi (1920) himself defines it
as vindication of truth, not by infliction of suffering on the opponent, but on oneself.
Meanwhile, Martin (1996) argues that the essence of satyagraha is communication. Gandhi
(as cited in ibid.) started his campaigns by tapping usual communication channels like
requesting officials in a polite manner to change oppressive policies. If this fails, then the
Indian leader would initiate more encompassing nonviolent methods such as marches,
boycotts, and illegal activities. Similarly, because the people of Sitio Basi failed to stop the
creek project after sending letters to concerned officials and agencies and asking for an
appropriate mediating body between the oppressor and them, they resorted to a bolder of way
of communicating resistance by finally making it known to the public.

Communicating resistance psychologically requires the oppressed to interpret

and construct their experiences in a way that makes them refuse to submit to
oppression

Kucukaydin (2008) raises that while cognitivist and social constructivism two
popular branches of the constructivist theory consider the social context in the construction
of knowledge and meaning, these two paradigms do not give much emphasis on the sociopolitical context and its role on the phenomenon being studied. To capture this context in the
study, critical constructivism is needed for it reveals the role of dominant ideology and its
power structure in the knowledge/meaning construction (ibid.). According to Kincheloe
(1997, p. 58), critical constructivism leads to an understanding of the way power works at
both macro (deep structural) and micro (particularistic) levels to shape our understandings of
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the world and our role in it. Through it, one can discover how several aspects of an
individuals life such as political, religious, gender, and racial beliefs had been shaped by
cultures and subcultures which are dominant (Kincheloe, 2005).

Experience is one of the key components of constructivist counter-learning, a form of

resistance against learning dominant discourse and ideology (Kucukaydin, 2008).
Contextualizing this idea on experience in the general context of resistance, the oppressive
life experiences of Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia are the bases for their communication of
resistance against oppression. Despite the events which aimed to oppress them like the
construction at the creek and the imprisonment of the first two, the ways they interpret and
construct their experiences precluded them from succumbing to oppression. For instance,
they do not regard the Gorospe-owned Chrysalis Academy as a business monolith they could
not dare challenge for what it was doing to the creek, even if their little houses merely border
it. Nor do they look up to Mayor Gorospe as a political sovereign they could not dare
criticize, even if he holds the politico-economic arsenal that allows him to do almost
everything he wants, which possibly includes eradicating those who stand in the way of his
agenda. Like the Turkish Zelo in Kucukaydins (2008) study of counter-learning, the
oppressive events at Sitio Basi could not force them to submit because [they] constructed
[their] understanding by critically analyzing and reflecting on the experiences (p. 323). By
doing this, one achieves what Freire (1970) calls critical consciousness, a socio-political
version critical thinking, which in turn targets oppression (Watts & Griffith, 1999). Still,
Kucukaydin warns, socio-cultural forces of the context of the poor and marginalized like
Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia must have defined to some extent the ways they constructed their
worlds. Specifically, these contructions are what Kucukaydin (2008) calls mental and
emotional filters and tools for meaning making which are then curtailed by the subjective
and objective material conditions of the oppressed. An example is Placido and Zaldys
condition of being confined in jail which facilitates the construction of a society that rewards
the oppressor and punishes the oppressed. Suffering in prison which Placido describes as
unworthy of even the vicious criminal (because of the very limited space and exposure to air
and sunlight), what could they have realized after boldly communicating their resistance

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against powerful people like the mayor? What more could they have done had they not been
confined in such a condition for starters?

The way Placido construes knowledge in the context of the Sitio Basi creek issue
confirms the literature on critical constructivism. As its name suggests, constructivism views
learning as a process in which new knowledge is built upon an existing knowledge
(Cobern, 1993; Yager, 1991, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008). Placidos knowledge and
awareness of oppressive practices, which played a vital role in his protest over the
construction at the creek, was built upon his knowledge of and exposure to an unjust incident
back in high school. As student council president of a public high school in La Merced, he
had the principal fired from office after having an illicit affair with a teacher. The knowledge
that authorities in his own realm of experience could perform unethical practices was
something he learned at a relatively young age. Moreover, the knowledge that he decided to
speak up on this high school incident probably made him realize that it is possible to
challenge such transgressing authorities even if he does not seem to be in the position to do
so, as long as he is on the side of truth. This knowledge was constructed at a time when
Placido was at Eriksons (1959, 1968) psychosocial development stage where identity
clashes with role-confusion and the question, Who am I and where am I going? is being
asked. It is also a stage marked by the suddenly sharpened awareness of the roles society
has offered for later life (Gross, 1987, p. 39). When society could have dictated to Placido at
this period that his role as a student and a future adult is to fulfil responsibilities normally
expected of him, he chose to transcend this social role and challenged the authority. This
experience provided him the knowledge that he could resist oppressive acts despite
prevailing social forces, and that he could do so again when opportunity arises as he did in
the Sito Basi case around 30 years later.

The findings, like Kucukaydins (2008) in his narrative analysis of how a Turkish
woman counter-learns under oppression, also substantiate a critical constructivist idea called
analysis of the personal. Kucukaydin cites Kincheloe (2005) in saying that making references
to feminism, critical constructivism emphasizes the role of the personal in meaning making

84

and knowledge construction. Analysis of the personal assumes that apart from reason, the
role of individual, emotions, gender, and other non-cognitive factors also play a crucial role
in the learning process (Kucukaydin, 2008). Lilias personals like her gender and her
emotions have been crucial to a conceptualization of learning which leads to resistance. Her
anger is a specific example.

ako kasi yung tao na, [ma]prinsipyo. Yung pag alam kong
mali, mali. Pag alam ko namang may katwiran ka at mali ako,
bakit naman di ko tatanggapin? Yun, yun ang ikinagalit ko.
Galit, galit talaga ako sa kanila. Galit talaga ako Di nila
kayang tanggapin na sa isang banda ay tama kami.
(...I am the kind of person who have strong principles. If I
know that something wrong, it is wrong. If I know that you
have a point and I am wrong, then why would I not accept it?
That, that is the thing that irks me. I am mad, I am really mad
at them. I am really mad... They cannot accept the fact that at
one point, we are right.)

On the other hand, Placidos personals include his instinct. When Chrysalis Academy
forbade its employees to take lunch at eateries outside the school, which eventually resulted
in the Katimbang couple closing theirs for good, Placido felt a sense of foreboding
concerning his family. Lilia recounts this moment.

Sabi niya, Baka, ah, medyo tagilid ako sa laban ko dito

[tungkol sa construction sa creek]. Sabi niyang ganun.
Medyo delikado ako dahil, hindi ko yata alam na mukhang
Basta nararamdaman niya e. Itinext niya kay Ka Elmer
[kaibigan mula sa militanteng grupong Kasangga] na,
Nararamdaman kong hindi maganda ang mga susunod na
mangyayari.
(He said, Perhaps, ah, I might be on the losing end on this
fight [against the construction at the creek]. Thats what he
said. Im a bit in danger because, I didnt seem to know
that The point is he sensed it. He texted Ka Elmer [friend
from the militant group Kasangga] and said, I sensed some
unpleasant things are going to happen.)

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His knowledge that an unfavorable event was imminent was not based on reason but
on instinct. If personals like Lilias emotion and Placidos instinct are not analyzed, then an
important part of the dynamics of their resistance against oppressive agents would be
overlooked.

Kincheloe (2005, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008) explains that critical constructivism

aims to extend human consciousness by showing and understanding how dominant power
manages and manipulates knowledge. Based on the second major finding of the study,
Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia were able to deconstruct the oppressive phenomenon of the creek
project by characterizing that it casts in its phenomenon a powerful oppressor and a
marginalized oppressed; exerts force to dominate the oppressed; silences the oppressed;
entails the exploitation of human and financial resources; mars the image of the community;
deprives the oppressed of their basic rights; and persists to accomplish its end. By
understanding how dominant power feeds on and benefits from these oppressive attributes,
which in turn shape the dominant knowledge and reality, these Sitio Basi residents were able
to transcend a consciousness that submits to this dominant power and gain another level of
consciousness that resists it. Moreover, as Kucukaydin (2008) confirms in his study on
counter-learning under oppression, the more the individuals deconstruct the dominant culture
and structure, the more they are empowered to resist oppression and live on.

That Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia detached themselves from the dominant ways of
thinking and sense making, which is a prerequisite to communicating resistance effectively,
also means that they unconsciously adopted a central critical constructivist notion that the
oppressed must step back from the world as [they] are accustomed to perceiving it
(Kincheloe, 2005). This process of detachment based on critical contructvism is related in a
larger socio-political context to Marcuses (1964) idea of Great Refusal, which is discussed
in the subsequent paragraphs.

Combined with critical constructivism to form the theoretical framework of this

study, Marcuses critical theory was used to examine on a larger scale the socio-political
86

context in which Sitio Basi residents experience the oppression and how this context has
affected them. Critical theory according to Herbert Marcuse is useful and relevant for
studying the societal context of the modern times (Kucukaydin, 2008). This German Jewish
philosopher, sociologist, and political theorist, as mentioned in the reviewed literature,
forwards determinants of oppression unique to other members of the Frankfurt School
social controls which bring forth a one-dimensional [wo]man and a society without
opposition (Marcuse, 1964; and Kellner, 2001 as cited in ibid.). Marcuse (1964) argues that
dominant values in what he called the advanced industrial society encroach on the
individuals most private space (the inner dimension of the mind and the self) through
popular platforms like mass media, culture, and advertising. He describes this space as the
center of the inner dimension of the mind in which opposition to the status quo can take
root (Marcuse, 1964, p. 10). However, if this inner dimension is being intruded, the
individual can imbibe the dominant values which as a result can make him or her onedimensional. An example of a social control according to Marcuse which induces the onedimensionality of an individual is consumerism. He argues that the individual is
depersonalized and becomes a part of the industrial and consumer machine. Then advertising
would fuel consumerism, deluding the masses that happiness could be bought a notion
psychologically and socially damaging.

As confirmed in Kucukaydins (2008) study of counter-learning under oppression,

which also utilized the Marcusian perspective, this study also explains that societys
encroaching of dominant values on the inner dimension of the mind empowers ideology and
oppression. When these dominant values are internalized by individuals, their inner
dimensions become also susceptible to external forces (culture and political economy)
fuelled by such values (ibid.). However, what is crucial about this private dimension is that it
holds the raw power to resist the status quo. When dominant values invade this inner place,
they would not only quench this resisting power but they will also cause the loss of
individuality a phenomenon Marcuse calls mimesis: an immediate identification of the
individual with his society (Marcuse, 1964, p. 10, as cited in ibid.). Kuculaydin (2008)
implies that mimesis kills the independent and free self and creates one that is preferred and
predetermined by society and status quo. Placido seems to understand this concept, albeit
87

unwittingly, when he shares the reality that by and large Sitio Basi residents have overlooked
subtle but crucial issues affecting them in the long-run because they have been absorbed into
their daily survival. They have conformed to the status quo and expectations of society.

maraming kasama ko sa komunidad ang hindi nila

namamalayang yun yung mga nangyayari dahil sa sila'y abala
sa paghahanapbuhay para maitaguyod ang kanilang pamilya,
hindi naman na nila priority na yung kung minsan, mga bagay
na importante, hindi nila namamalayan na importante rin sa
pamumuhay natin ngayon yung may kamalayan sa ganung
bagay e dapat ipaunawa mo yun sa kaniya para sila'y mamulat
na, na nalalapastangan ka pala hindi mo lang namamalayan.
(a lot of my fellows in the community are not aware of what
is going on because they are preoccupied with making both
ends meet for their families, sometimes its no longer their
priorities, things that are important which they dont find
important for themselvesthose who are aware of those things
must educate those who arent so that they realize theyre being
screwed up when they dont even know about it.)

Marcuse (1964) adds that oppression is difficult to be examined rationally and

critically when it is internalized because the oppressed no longer feels the oppression as
oppressive (Kucukaydin, 2008, p. 339). In fact, the oppressed submits to the oppression and
willingly participates in his or her own process of subjugation (Agger, 1988, as cited in
ibid.).

Still, Marcuse (1964) assures that not everyones inner dimensions fall prey to
dominant power and that there are ways for the oppressed to self-emancipate. Such ways can
be emotional, intellectual, and linguistic disengagement from the dominant system. This
engagement can be revolutionary because to repossess the intruded inner dimension of the
mind, it is necessary for adults to experience a fundamental estrangement from commonly
accepted ways of thinking and feeling (Brookfield, 2005, p. 196, as cited in Kucukaydin,
2008). Marcuse calls it the Great Refusal. In response to consumerism for instance, this
could take the form of anti-consumerism which abnegates unnecessary consumption, work,
waste, etc. As implied earlier, the refusal could be abstract too. Lilia could not have said it
88

better when she reveals that people like her refuse to submit to the supposedly oppressive
agenda of Chrysalis Academy and the municipal mayor, even if they are aware of the cost of
resisting the most powerful political and economic authority in the town.

Siguro, kaya lang sila nagagalit sa amin kasi isang mahirap

lang kami na hindi tumatanggap ng gusto nilang mangyari.
Yun lang siguro ang ikinagagalit nila sa amin. Di nila kayang
tanggapin na sa isang banda ay tama kami.
(Perhaps the only reason why they are angry with us is because
we are just the poor who [ironically] do not accept what they
want to happen. That perhaps is the only reason for their anger.
They couldnt accept that in one way, we are right.)

This statement suggests an important insight about the consciousness of a dissident

like Lilia. She does not merely admit her refusal to yield to the oppressive agenda of the
school administration and the mayor; she even goes to the extent of theorizing the
motivations of the oppressor for repressing the residents of Sitio Basi. Lilias consciousness
did not only evolve from one invaded by dominant values to one emancipated by the refusal
to embrace dominant values. Her consciousness could be said to have also extended to that of
the oppressor and his schemes, and being able to penetrate the consciousness of the oppressor
would allow the oppressed to answer the questions Why do oppressors do what they do to
dissidents like her? and How do they do it? Kincheloe (2005, as cited in Kucukaydin,
2008) refers to this extension of human consciousness as a goal of critical constructivism,
which is accomplished by showing and understanding how dominant power manages and
manipulates knowledge.

A very recent study by Hay (2011) corroborates Marcuses idea of Great Refusal
which he discussed at length around half a century ago in One-Dimensional Man: Studies in
the Ideology of Advanced Industrial Society (1964). Hay (2011) refers to a similar concept
she terms as internal resistance. She explains that one can resist oppression internally apart
from externally (such as activism and opting out) by building up mental walls against many
of the harms to her rational nature threatened by oppression. The dissident could learn and
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guard against potential dangers and risks of these harms. They could also reject repressive
social messages that tell them their character and worth. Hay says that as long as forms of
internal resistance like these successfully defend ones rational nature from the damages of
oppression, they have also successfully satisfied the obligation to resist his or her oppression.

Why Resistance is Communicated

If the very first finding of the study reveals that oppression has raison d'tre, so also
has the communication of resistance against oppression. Based on the narratives of Placido,
Zaldy, and Lilia, there are four main reasons why people of Sitio Basi chose to protest the
construction of a building on top of its creek. These reasons are practical, social, ecological,
and moral.

Communicating resistance is chiefly driven by practicality

Placido was concerned that the family most affected by the project at the creek is his.
This is because the lot his house occupies is the one nearest to the body of water vis--vis
those of his neighbors. His family had been asked by Chrysalis Academy through a letter to
evacuate the area and dismantle whatever was built on it 30 days upon receiving it on
January 18, 2011, two weeks after Placido was arrested with Zaldy. In the letter, the school
claims that the area is part of its property. Placidos justification for his resistance begins on
practical grounds.

Ako yung direktang unang-unang maaapektuhan sapagkat ako

yung unang bahay na matutumbok ng kanilang proyekto.Kaya
ako yung unang tumututol. Ganun lang kasimple ang
paliwanag ko dun.
(I will be the first and foremost to be affected since my house
is the first house that will come in contact with their project.
That's why I am the first to voice my objection. That's how
simple my explanation is.)

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Critical theory, according to Marcuse (as cited in Kellner, 2001, and Kucukaydin,
2008), is to define the highest human potentialities and to criticize society in terms of
whether it furthers the development and realization of these potentialities, or their
constriction and repression (p. 14). Knowing this, Marcuses critical theory could be used to
analyze how society nurtures or vultures the individual potential. A major requisite for
tapping this potential is for people to meet their true needs for survival such as food, clothing,
and shelter, as against repressive needs characterized by superfluous commodities like
cosmetics, luxury items, and recreational items (Demand Media, 2011). Survival was a
principal reason why Placido chose to communicate his resistance against the construction at
the creek, a project which threatened to dismantle a true basic need for his potential
according to Marcuse (1964) his house.

Communicating resistance considers the welfare of society

However, Placido did not only regard the interest of his own family on his decision to
protest but also that of the entire community of Sitio Basi. The reason is not only practical or
survival, but also social.

Kaya ako tumututol dahil sa una, ako ang maaapektuhan,

pangalawa maaapektuhan ang buong kanayunan, buong
komunidad dahil sa babahain, babaha. Sino ba naman ang
gusto ng baha? Yun lang naman ang aking concern,
community concern ko lang yun. Kasi pangit naman yung
buhay mo ay wala kang concern sa kapitbahay mo diba?
The reason I am objecting is first, it will affect me, second our
whole village will also be affected, the whole community will
be flooded, there will be floods. Who wants to experience
flood, right? ...That is my main concern, my community
concern. I think it is not right if you do not have any concern
for your neighbors, right?

This altruistic attitude by Placido stems from his identification with his own
community and his view that the consequence of covering the creek (i.e. aggravated floods)

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would be shouldered by its members. He probably also recognizes that addressing the issue is
also a corporate responsibility, that the problem of the community is the problem of its
constituents and therefore they are accountable to solving it. In the case of the creek issue,
the oppression of the community is the oppression of its people and therefore they are
obligated to resist it (Hay, 2011). This social resistance happens when ones own people, the
Other inside the Self, or the Self in the Other, start reacting the same way, non-violently,
sending a forceful signal that we are not tolerating this any longer (Galtung, 1989, p. 19).
Taking Marcuses (1964) idea of a one-dimensional [wo]man in the context of Sitio Basi
community, a society without opposition could be undone to an extent if its people
collectively refuse social controls like an oppressive political authority. This refusal could be
partly attributed to a sense of altruism among community members.

Communicating resistance takes into account ecological implications

Still, humans are not only at stake in the issue, but also the one thing where the
problem actually all started: the Sitio Basi creek. Marcuse (1972) adopted the Frankfurt
school idea of reconciliation with nature as a crucial ingredient for human liberation,
contending that the violation of the earth is a vital aspect of the counterrevolution" (p. 10, as
cited in Kellner, 1982). Likewise, residents like Zaldy could see how the Chrysalis Academy
project is depriving the creek of its natural state, which in turn has a bearing on human life.
Zaldy describes this repercussion.

Kasi nakikita namin nun e, kapag naulankami maapektuhan

kasi liliit nga yung creek e. Sa'min babalik, magfi-feedback
yung tubig nun kaya kami yung maapektuhan. Kaya nga
tinutulan talaga namin yun.
(We could see it then, when it rainedwe were the ones
affected because the creek would get smaller. It would come
back to us, the water would feedback thats why we would be
the ones affected. Thats why we really protested against it.)

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Zaldy and the two other research participants in this study did not express a concern
for the creek per se unless it involves their households. Nonetheless, by taking an ecological
entity as a significant component of their message of resistance, Sito Basi residents have
treated the environment as part of their lives not only because the creek is proximal to them
but also because it has become part of their struggle.

Communicating resistance is justified on moral grounds

Now this struggle is not only founded on the welfare of the practical self, the
empathized others, and the imperilled environment it is also driven on grounds of morality.
Lilia defends the communitys argument for protesting the construction at the creek by
asserting that such project is oppressive and runs counter to their standards of right or wrong.
ako kasi yung tao na, [ma]prinsipyo. Yung pag alam kong
mali, mali. Pag alam ko namang may katwiran ka at mali ako,
bakit naman di ko tatanggapin? Yun, yun ang ikinagalit ko.
Galit, galit talaga ako sa kanila. Galit talaga ako Di nila
kayang tanggapin na sa isang banda ay tama kami.
(...I am the kind of person who has strong principles. If I know
that something is wrong, it is wrong. If I know that you have a
point and I am wrong, then why would I not accept it? That,
that is the thing that irks me. I am mad, I am really mad at
them. I am really mad... They cannot accept the fact that at one
point, we are right.)

Violating Lilias morality by the Chrysalis Academy project causes her to feel
indignant about it. This violation might have been a repercussion and/or a sine qua non of
carrying out and sustaining an oppressive act, which in turn deprives the poor and
marginalized of the freedom to make their own choices in life. In An Essay on Liberation,
Marcuse (1969) claims that what is ethical is inextricably linked to what is political,
particularly to what could bring political liberation (Pfeifer, n.d.).He says that [p]olitical
radicalismimplies moral radicalism: The emergence of a morality which might
precondition man for freedom. This radicalism activates the elementary, organic foundation
of morality in human beings (p. 10). Likewise, the so-called political radicalism exemplified
93

to an extent by the Sitio Basi residents in their nonviolent resistance against Chrysalis
Academy and town administrations implies the blossoming of a morality that is emancipatory
in nature. This empowering ethics taps into the typical sense of right and wrong among the
people of Sitio Basi the sense of what Lilia calls prinsipyo (principle).

94

CHAPTER 5
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter offers a summary and conclusions for this study which sought to explore
the dynamics of communicating resistance by the poor and marginalized against an
oppressive ecologically risky project. Implications of such conclusions and suggestions for
further inquiry are also discussed.

Summary

My encounter with 61-year-old Vivian Lim one dusky night of September 11, 2011 in
Sitio Basi, La Merced confirmed a controversial issue in that community which was claimed
by its residents as oppressive. This case formed the basis for this study which aimed to
answer the general question: What is the dynamics of communicating resistance by the poor
and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically risky project? Specifically, the study
addressed the following research questions: (1) How do Sitio Basi residents interpret
oppression in the oppressive ecologically risky project?; (2) How do they communicate their
resistance against the project?; and (3) Why do they communicate their resistance despite the
risks involved? The combination of critical constructivism and Herbert Marcuses critical
theory formed as the theoretical framework of the study. The dynamics of communicating
resistance by the poor and marginalized was analyzed using critical constructivism, while the
Marcusian critical theory was applied to study on a larger scale the socio-political context in
which they experience the oppression and how this context has affected them.

Based on the nature of this study which sought to explore the dynamics of
communicating resistance by Sitio Basi residents against an oppressive ecologically risky
project, the qualitative research paradigm was employed which looked into how people

95

interpret their experiences, how they construct their worlds, and what meaning they attribute
to their experiences (Merriam, 2009, p. 5). Specifically, this study employed the narrative
research because narration serves as a symbolic and coded platform for self-expression
amidst an oppressive condition, and it enhances the analysis of how Sitio Basi residents
construct reality and deconstruct the oppressive structure. Narrative analysis also puts
premium on the socio-political context in which Sitio Basi residents are situated. Transcripts
of semi-structured and in-depth interviews with three research participants were subjected to
the procedures of narrative analysis adapted from Bernard and Ryan (2010). Coding was
processed with the aid of the qualitative research software XSight.

Themes generated empirically from the data provided by the interview transcripts led
to findings which reveal the nature of oppression and the dynamics of communicating
resistance against oppression.

Oppression breeds from an oppressors personal agenda. Oppressive structures and

practices stem from the oppressors propensity to pursue his or her own interests at the
expense of a vulnerable group or entity. For instance, in the case of this study, the pursuit by
the Gorospe-owned Chrysalis Academy entails expanding its territory which it could argue as
a plain initiative for school improvement, but not according to the constructs of Sitio Basi
residents. Apart from expanding the school premises as a justification for initiating
oppressive efforts against people like Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia according to their own lens,
an attitudinal reason on the part of who they label as the oppressors also emerged from the
in-depth interviews. This marginalizing attitude toward the oppressed is explained by Paulo
Freires Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970). The Brazilian educator-activist states that on the
part of the oppressors, human beings refers only to themselves; other people are things
(p. 57, as cite in Dumlao, n.d.).

Attributes of oppression emerge to sustain the oppressive phenomena. As

corroborated by Kucukaydin (2008), oppression inevitably produces components aimed at
maintaining it. From the narratives of Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia, certain attributes of
96

oppression involving the project to cover the Sitio Basi creek and the consequences of the
residents protest against it emerge and are enumerated below. At some instances, these
attributes are not mutually exclusive to one another and indeed can overlap following the
dynamic nature of oppression.

a. Oppression casts in its phenomenon a powerful oppressor and a marginalized

oppressed.
b. Oppression exerts force to dominate the oppressed.
c. Oppression silences the oppressed.
d. Oppression entails the exploitation of human and financial resources.
e. Oppression mars the image of a community.
f. Oppression deprives the oppressed of their basic rights.
g. Oppression persists to accomplish its end.

Communicating resistance begins with establishing Habermas (1984) ideal speech

situation within the oppressed group. Placidos description of the community meetings
regarding the construction at the creek which he himself initiated point to some features of
Habermas ideal speech situation. For one, assembling the residents to discuss community
concerns builds on the assumption that each of them has the ability to communicate and to
engage in dialogue. Arriving at an inter-subjective agreement was not challenging either
because the people were exposed to the same community problem (i.e. the worsening flood
due to the construction at the creek) and they were concerned about one anothers welfare.
Neighbors who also regard the interests of one another besides their personal interests can
make decisions and reach agreements that would put first the interest of the community.
Further, the meeting of such people, generally speaking, is better immunised against
repression and inequality in a special way (Habermas, 1984, p. 25).

Communicating resistance then involves the application of Martins (1996) symbolic

actions and Galtungs (1989) Great Chain of Nonviolence. Martin (1996) states that
communication is central to methods of nonviolent resistance, and writing letters to
97

concerned parties is one specific example. He categorized writing a letter as a symbolic

action, which may seem ineffectual but it could openly and influentially challenge a dictator.
In the case of Sitio Basi residents, the letter of petition they signed and sent to government
officials and agencies must have caught their attention, provided it truly ended up on the
desks of the officials concerned and was read by them. Nevertheless, only DENR heeded the
residents petition. The officials concerned may not necessarily be dictators, but if they were
indeed openly and influentially challenged by the letter according to Martin, then challenging
them through such medium proves insufficient to cause them to act. One may say that writing
a letter as a symbolic action of nonviolent resistance may well just be symbolic. Meanwhile,
the role of DENR as a mediating entity exemplifies Galtungs (1989) in-between group in
his Great Chain of Nonviolence Hypothesis. Galtung argues that in-between groups bridge
the gap between the oppressed and the oppressor by communicating the concerns of the
former to the latter. However, because of the non-cooperation of concerned agencies and
officials in the planned DENR dialogue, the environment agency failed to exist as an inbetween group in the first place.

Communicating resistance can proceed on the basis of Gandhis (1920) satyagraha.

Martin (1996) argues that the essence of satyagraha is communication. Gandhi (as cited in
ibid.) started his campaigns by tapping usual communication channels like requesting
officials in a polite manner to change oppressive policies. If this fails, then the Indian leader
would initiate more encompassing nonviolent methods such as marches, boycotts, and illegal
activities. Similarly, Sitio Basi residents began their campaign through the usual
communication channel of a petition letter, which is also an example of Martins (1996)
symbolic act. Still, only DENR responded to the petition letter signed by around 100
residents of Sitio Basi, the one agency which eventually disengaged itself from supporting
the community purportedly in fear of the Chrysalis manager cum La Merced mayor. After
the failure of writing a letter and mobilizing an in-between group (which did not prove an
effective one in the end), Placido, with the aid of Zaldy, resorted to a bold move to express
more explicitly a growing community concern. Posting at a public place DENRs letter in
tarpaulin, the content of which advised the school to postpone its construction on top of the
creek, was not only an unusual and bold method to express dissent but one which made the
98

issue known to public. Such method might have conveyed the message to the school officials
that the residents would not give up on their nonviolent campaign anytime soon and that they
could resort to bolder ways of resistance. It was claimed that this resulted in the
imprisonment of Placido and Zaldy on January 4, 2011.

Communicating resistance adopts the goals of critical constructivism and entails

Marcuses (1964) Great Refusal. Despite the events which aimed to oppress Placido,
Zaldy, and Lilia like the construction at the creek and the imprisonment of the first two, the
ways they interpret and construct their experiences precluded them from succumbing to
oppression. Moreover, the way Placido construes knowledge in the context of the Sitio Basi
creek issue confirms the literature on critical constructivism. The findings, like Kucukaydins
(2008) in his narrative analysis of how a Turkish woman counter-learns under oppression,
also substantiate a critical constructivist idea called analysis of the personal. Kincheloe
(2005, as cited in Kucukaydin, 2008) explains that critical constructivism aims to extend
human consciousness by showing and understanding how dominant power manages and
manipulates knowledge. Likewise, Sitio Basi residents like Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia were
able to transcend a consciousness that submits to this dominant power and gain another level
of consciousness that resists it. This process of detachment based on critical constructivism is
related in a larger socio-political context to Marcuses (1964) idea of Great Refusal. When
dominant values invade the inner dimension of the mind, they would not only quench this
resisting power but they would also cause the loss of individuality a phenomenon Marcuse
calls mimesis: an immediate identification of the individual with his society (Marcuse,
1964, p. 10, as cited in ibid.). Kucukaydin (2008) implies that mimesis kills the independent
and free self and creates one that is preferred and predetermined by society and status quo.
Placido seems to understand this concept, albeit unwittingly, when he shares the reality that
by and large Sitio Basi residents have overlooked subtle but crucial issues affecting them in
the long-run because they have been absorbed into their daily survival. Still, Marcuse assures
that not everyones inner dimensions (like those of Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia) fall prey to
dominant power and that there are ways for the oppressed to self-emancipate which involves
the Great Refusal of the dominant system. Lilia could not have said it better when she
reveals that people like her refuse to submit to the supposedly oppressive agenda of Chrysalis
99

Academy and the municipal mayor, even if they are aware of the cost of resisting the most
powerful political and economic authority in the town.

Communicating resistance is justified on practical, social, ecological, and moral

grounds. Based on the narratives of Placido, Zaldy, and Lilia, there are practical, social,
ecological, and moral reasons why people of Sitio Basi chose to protest the construction of a
building on top of its creek. Survival was a principal reason why Placido chose to
communicate his resistance against the construction at the creek, a project which threatened
to dismantle a true basic need for his potential according to Marcuse his house. However,
Placido did not only regard the interest of his own family on his decision to protest but also
that of the entire community of Sitio Basi. The reason is not only practical, but also social.
This altruistic attitude by Placido stems from his identification with his own community and
his view that the consequence of covering the creek (i.e. aggravated floods) would be
shouldered by its members. Likewise, residents like Zaldy could see how the Chrysalis
project is depriving the creek of its natural state, which in turn has a bearing on human life.
Now this struggle is not only founded on the welfare of the practical self, the empathized
others, and the imperilled environment it is also driven on grounds of morality. Lilia
defends the communitys argument for protesting the construction at the creek by asserting
that such project is oppressive and runs counter to their standards of right or wrong.

These findings generated from the research study are illustrated in Figure 1.

100

COMMUNICATING
RESISTANCE

Antagonistic
Relationship

entails a procedure
begins with organizing community
meetings within the oppressed group to
discuss the oppressive issue (Habermas
[1984] ideal speech situation)

involves sending letters to concerned

officials and agencies (Martin's [1996]
symbolic actions)

entails requesting an appropriate agency

to sit as a mediating body between the
oppressor and them (Galtungs [1989]
Great Chain of Nonviolence)

proceeds on making the oppressive issue

known to the public by putting up a
poster (Gandhis [1927] satyagraha)

psychologically requires the oppressed to

interpret and construct their experiences in
a way that makes them refuse to submit to
oppression (critical constructivism &
Marcuses [1964] Great Refusal )

is justified on practical, social,

ecological, and moral grounds

OPPRESSION
breeds from an
oppressor's personal
agenda
expansion of territory
oppressors' contemptuous
attitude towards the
oppressed

possesses attributes to
sustain the oppressive
phenomena
casts a powerful oppressor and
a marginalized oppressed
exerts force to dominate the
oppressed
silences the oppressed
entails the exploitation of
human and financial resources
mars the image of a
community
deprives the oppressed of their
basic rights
persists to accomplish its end

Figure 1. Dynamics of communicating

resistance against an oppresive
ecologically risky project
101

Conclusions and Implications

This study, which sought to explore the dynamics of communicating resistance by the
poor and marginalized against an oppressive ecologically risky project, has offered insights
into the nature of oppression and the dynamics of communicating resistance against
oppression among the poor and marginalized. Having summarized the seven findings of this
research, I came up with the following conclusions and implications.

An oppressive act always has a raison d'tre which serves the interest of the dominant
group in an unjust society. It possesses several attributes to sustain itself. Communicating
resistance against this oppressive act is justified on practical, social, ecological, and moral
grounds. To communicate resistance effectively, the oppressed must reject the dominant
group, discourse, structure, roles, and norms not just through external means like activism
and copting out, but also internally.

Communicating nonviolent resistance starts with more acceptable forms of resistance

which if do not work could resort to bolder, more radical ones. Adopting this style would
provide a more sound justification for the resistance. The nonviolent procedures carried out
by the Sitio Basi residents could be emulated by other community members who find
themselves in the same oppressive situation.

If this still fails because, in the case of Placido and Zaldy, the leaders of the resistance
are physically confined by the oppressor, the rest of the oppressed can appeal to genuine inbetween groups who could effectively echo and challenge the oppressive phenomenon. The
in-between groups usually constitute the middle class, and for them to be a genuine mediator
they too must internalize Marcuses Great Refusal and Hays internal resistance.

The in-between groups can take the Sitio Basi creek issue to the higher office of
DENR but since Chrysalis Academy has paid for the sanction due to the creek according to

102

one of the research participants, then the mediators can appeal to the department for a critical
investigation of the issue with different sectors as watchdogs.

Due to its coverage and influence, mainstream broadcast and print media can serve as
in-between groups by covering the Sitio Basi creek issue and therefore putting pressure on
the higher authorities. A community newspaper in La Merced has covered it. While at that, I
also recognize the mainstream media and the states participation in the dominant and
oppressive discourse and practices. This calls for the local independent press like Bulatlat
and Rappler to cover stories of oppression and analyze them with a critical lens.

Even if the Katimbang couple are affiliated with a militant group, they claim that they
would still pursue the resistance in the absence of such affiliation based on moral grounds
(i.e. based on principle). This implies that nonviolent resistance is not a monopoly of the
militant agenda.

Lastly, since the field of development communication principally targets

empowerment, which involves facilitating the use of communication in community and
individual problem-solving and decision-making, raising social and political consciousness,
and mobilizing people towards critical action (CDC-UPLB, 2012), more research and
extension work on and more pedagogical exposure to oppression and asymmetrical power
relations are crucial.

Recommendations

After examining in this study the dynamics of how and why Sitio Basi residents
communicate their resistance against an oppressive situation, which has offered insights into
the nature of oppression and the dynamics of communicating resistance against oppression
among the poor and marginalized, the following general suggestions could be explored by
future researchers:

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1. Rationale and methodology of communicating resistance by the oppressed in extreme

rural and urban communities
2. Rationale and methodology of communicating resistance by the oppressed without a
militant background
3. Distinction between the way men communicate resistance and that of women
4. How the oppressor use communication to counter resistance
5. Communication dynamics within the oppressed group
6. Intrapersonal communication of the oppressed
7. Further exploration into the findings generated in this study which reveal oppressive
attributes

104

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APPENDICES

118

APPENDIX A

KATIBAYAN NG PAGSANG-AYON
(HUMAN RESEARCH ETHICS APPROVAL)

Ako, si _____________________________ ng ______________________________, ay sumangayon na maging kalahok sa isang pag-aaral na pinamagatang Voices of Resistance, Acts of
Oppression: A Critical Study on Communicating Resistance Against an Oppressive Ecologically
Risky Project na isinakatuparan ni Linus Van O. Plata
Akin nang nabasa ang Payak na Pahayag para sa sa mga Kalahok sa Pagsasaliksik o Plain Language
Statement for Research Participants na tumutukoy sa nasabing pag-aaral at aking naintindihan na
ang pag-aaral na ito ay sumesentro sa pag-intindi sa kung paano at bakit ipinahahatid ng mga
mahihirap ang kanilang pagtutol sa mga opresibong gawa ng makapangyarihan.
Ako ay nagpapatotoo na:
1. Maayos na ipinaliwanag sa akin ang mga hangarin, mithiin, pamamaraan, at inaasahang
benepisyo ng pagsaliksik na ito.
2. Ako ay kusang-loob na sumang-ayon na maging isang kalahok sa pag-aaral na ito. Bukal sa
aking loob ang pagsagot sa mga tanong sa gagawing panayam sa akin.
3. Ang panayam ay inirekord gamit ang isang MP3 recorder. Ang panayam na ito ay itinala ng
nagsaliksik.
4. Maayos na ipinaliwanag sa akin na ang mga resulta ng pag-aaral na ito ay gagamitin lamang
sa mga binanggit na paggagamitan nito.
5. Alinmang impormasyon ukol sa aking katauhan ay papanatilihing nakatago. Ako ay gagamit
ng alyas o ibang pangalan upang ako ay hindi matukoy o makilala.
6. Nagkaroon ako ng karapatan na hindi na makalahok sa pagsasaliksik kahit kalian ko man
naisin. Kung sakaling ako ay umatras sa pakikilahok dito, ang mga impormasyong nakalap
mula sa akin ay hindi na puwedeng magamit sa pag-aaral na ito.

PANGALAN AT LAGDA

PETSA

119

APPENDIX B

TRANSCRIPTIONS

Transcription Conventions
The following are signs and notations1 used in transcribing the narratives of Placido
Katimbang, Zaldy Fe, and Lilia Katimbang:

Square brackets indicate the beginning and end of overlapping speech

Both speeches are aligned to indicate the precise parts that are
overlapping

underlining

Underlined words, phrases, and sentences indicate emphasis

Speakers may have said these in with heavier stress or louder pitch

exam::ple

Colons indicate an extended part of a word

The more colons, the longer the extension

hehheh

Indicates voiced laughter

italics

Italicized words indicate unfamiliar or unclear use of words

exa--

Double dashes indicate abrupt halt or a pause in speaking

The signs and notations used in the following conversation transcriptions are heavily
influenced by the Jefferson Transcription System.
120

Interview with Mr. Placido Katimbang (and Mrs. Lilia Katimbang)

1:41 pm, January 26, 2012
Duration: 1:03:37
Researcher: Linus Plata
______________________________________________________________
1

Researcher: Ok, Magandang hapon po Sir Placido Katimbang.

Interviewee:Magandang hapon din sayo ah

R:

I:

R:

OK, ako po si Linus, [galing] sa College of Development Communication,

[Linus]
so ginagawa po natin 'to para po sa aking research study. So iyon po,

magkakaron po tayo ng series of interviews, so marami pong salamat sa

kooperasyon at sa pag-approvedito sa interview na'to. So Sir, kamusta po

kayo ngayon?

I:

Masasabi kong nakapag-adjust na ko bilang nabiglang bilanggo, dahil hindi ko

inaasahan ang mga pangyayaring ito sa buhay ko.

10
11

R:

Opo.

12

I:

Pero masasabi kong nakapag-adjust na, hindi na kagaya noong mga unang

13

buwan na masyadong mahirap para tanggapin sa katulad ko. Mahirap

14

unawain na darating sa buhay mo yung mga ganitong tagpo. [Yun] lang.

15

R:

[ Opo.] Sabi niyo po

16

na hindi niyo inaasahan, hindi niyo maunawaan, paano niyo po nasabi yun,

17

Sir Placido?

18

I:

Dahil sa abot ng aking makakaya ay wala akong maisip na na-violate sa batas,

19

kaya napatunayan ko lang na kahit pala wala kang nava-violate ay pwede

20

mong ma-experience ang mga ganitong mga pangyayari sa buhay. Hindi mo

21

inaasahan ang mga maaring mangyari, maari ka pa ring maging biktima...

22

R:

Opo

23

I:

Biktima ng mga pangyayari at biktima ng mga taong hindi mabubuti ang

24

kanilang mga intensyon.

-more121

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...222

25

R:

Opo. Ok. Sir Placido, pinag--nagkaroon din po kasi ako ng research, kasi po

26

bilang researcher, kailangan po syempre mapag-aralan ko rin yung

27

background... background niyo po, background nung pangyayari, so pinag-

28

aralan ko po yung nangyari sa, dun sa creek, dun sa Sitio Basi Creek. So

29

kwentuhan niyo po kami doon sa nangyaring yun doon sa creek na iyon.

30

I:

Well, sa ano yun e, mga late October ng iginigiit ng pamunuan ng Chrysalis

31

Academy na isara yung ilog para matakpan nila yung creek, para matakpan

32

yung ibabaw so ma-occupy nila yung space nung ilog. Dahil sa doon na kami

33

naninirahan sa napakatagal na panahon, alam namin ang magiging epekto

34

nito sa komunidad na malaking baha ang lilikhain, madiin naming tinututulan

35

na dahil sa may sariling interes ang pamunuan ng Chrysalis Academy ay

36

gumawa sila ng mga pamamaraan na, para mabuwag ang aming samahan na

37

nagtataguyod ng pagtutol. Unang-una, sinubok nila na offer-an ako ng malaki

38

ring halaga para iwanan ko ang aking mga kasama sa pinaglalaban namin

39

para mabilis nilang magawa ang kanilang mga plano. Pero, dahil sa taliwas ito

40

sa aking pinaglalaban, hindi ko tinaggap ang kanilang ino-offer na pera.

41

Tinuloy ko yung paghahain ng reklamo sa DENR at kinatigan naman kami ng

42

DENR. In fact pinatitigil yung kanilang mga gawain. Subalit dahil sa::: ang isa

43

sa pamunuan ng Chrysalis Academy ay siya namang namumuno ng ating

44

bayan ng La Merced, na si, na si Mr. Gorospe, ay sila ay nagplano na ipadukot

45

ako, para makasuhan ng mga gawa-gawang kaso na ang pinili nilang ikaso sa

46

akin ay yung walang bail para, para malaya nilang magawa yung kanilang

47

plano.Ngayon dahil sa may mga nakakaalam ng mga lahat ng nangyayari,

48

dahil sa ito'y nirereport ko sa aking mga kaibigan, sa mga inaasahan kong

49

tutulong sa akin, ay nasubaybayan nila ang mga pangyayari.

50

R:

Sino po ang mga ito?

51

I:

Ay ito yung mga kaibigan ko sa Kasangga. Nasubaybayan nila ang mga

-more122

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...333

52

kaganapan, kung kaya't, ako nama'y kahit papaano'y sinusuportahan nila,

53

morally, para huwag ako bumigay sa labang ito. Sapagka't ako'y kinatigan ng

54

DENR, nangangahulugan na tama ang aming pinaglalaban. Sa katunayan nga

55

sinabi ng pamunuan ng DENRsa lalakay na kung kami'y mag-aaklas, sila'y

56

susuporta. Kaya lamang ay sa ginawang aksyon ng pamunuan ng Chrysalis

57

Academy sa pamumuno ni Mayor Gorospe, ay ako'y kinasuhan nila ng kasong

58

tungkol sa, may kinalaman sa droga, na kasong 5-11 kaya no bail, kaya ako'y

59

'di makalabas. Subalit, nakakatuwa naman sapagkat sinasabi ng ating Mayor

60

na ako ay Most Wanted sa tungkol sa droga, samantalang the day before na

61

ako ay hinuli, dinukot, ay it was January 4, 2011; January 3, 2011 nung ako ay

62

kumuha ng Police Clearance at ang resulta ay no Derogatory Record dahil sa

63

kinakailangan ko ito bilang requirement sa project ko sa International Rice

64

Research Institute dahil ako ay contractor sa painting, ni-require nila yung

65

Police Clearance at yung Drug Testing. So the day before na ako'y kanilang

66

dinukot ay nagpakuha rin ako ng, nagpa-undergo din ako sa Drug Testing at

67

both ay negative ang resulta.

68

R:

Oho.

69

I:

At dahil sa procedure nila na after na dinukot nila ako, ang kinaso nila sa akin

70

ay 5-11, ay S.O.P nila na dapat nila akong patignan sa Canlubang, at negative

71

pa rin ang resulta ng aking test, drug test. So meaning na puntos yun para sa

72

akin dahil ang kinakaso nila ay tungkol sa droga samantalang ako ay negatibo

73

sa droga.

74

R:

Oho, ah Sir Placido may mga nagsasabi na iba naman daw po yung drug

75

pushing sa drug using, so hindi naman po porke't nagtitinda ay gumagamit

76

na. Ano po ang inyong defense or explanation?

77
78

I:

Pwede. Tama, may puntos din sila dun. Ang sa akin lang kasi ay kung ako ay
nagbebenta dapat ay may katibayan sila na ako ay nagbebenta katulad ng

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79

marked money na may powder dahil ay actually nung araw na ako'y kanilang

80

dinukot, kagagaling ko lang sa IRRI na nagtatrabaho ako doon. May record

81

ang security guard, may record ang CCTV na ako sa buong maghapon ay

82

nandun. Samantalang sinasabi sa salaysay ng mga police ay ako ay, mga

83

bandang alas-tres ng hapon ay nasa Kambingan Restaurant at nag-deliver

84

daw 'di umano ng droga. Samantalang makakapagpatunay ang record ng

85

International Rice Research Institute na ako ay naroroon sa mga oras na iyon

86

at nagtatrabaho. Actually may witness ako na engineer sa IRRI, at the same

87

time yung CCTV hindi pwede magsinungaling kaya na::kakalungkot na hindi

88

lamang ako ang biktima ng mga kapulisan na yan na inuutusan ng ating

89

butihing, sinasabing butihing mayor, dahil kung kaya nilang gawin sa akin ay

90

lalo na sa iba. O maaring ako ang unang kanilang ginawan niyan dahil sa

91

kanilang mga motibo. Dahil isipin mo na sinasabi nila na... Although

92

nangyayari na pwede ka naman magbenta na hindi ka naman gumagamit,

93

pero kalimitan ng nagbebenta ay gumagamit at kung sinasabi nila na ako ay

94

Most Wanted tungkol sa droga how come na the day before na ako ay

95

kanilang dinukot, ay kumuha ako, sa mismong mga umaresto sa akin na mga

96

pulis, kumuha ako ng Police Clearance at sila ang nag-issue nito? So kung

97

wanted ako ay dapat sa oras na iyon ay dapat hinuli nila ako. Kaya dun mo

98

lang makikikita sa mga pangyayaring iyon na sila'y mga nagsisinungaling. In

99

fact, sinabi ng mga pulis na humihingi sila sa akin ng pasensya dahil utos lang
daw. Yun lang.

100
101

R:

Ano po ang konkretong statement ng DENR kaugnay dun sa issue sa creek?

102

I:

Ah, ang konkretong statement nila ay napakalaki ng violation ng Chrysalis

103

Academy sapagkat unang-una ay ito ay government property ang creek.

104

Actually ay red ito sa mapa, meaning na ito ay talagang buhay na ilog. Tapos

105

pinagbabawalan din ng DENR na ito ay takpan para maiwasan ang pagliit ng

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106

ilog. In fact, ang isang example niyan ay ang SM Calamba. Kung makikita natin

107

ang SM Calamba ay ito ay may creek na hindi tinakpan, although

108

nakakapangit sa paningin ng, kung titignan mo siya ay nakakapangit, subalit

109

ay 'di pwedeng takpan sapagkat yun ay pinagbabawal ng DENR. Yun ay isang

110

example ng DENR. Ah, ang isa pa ay hindi man DENR ang magsabi, although

111

nagpunta mismo ang DENR,nag-ocular inspection ang DENR at nagulat sila sa

112

ginagawa. Pinatitigil subalit ayaw tumigil ng Chrysalis . Hanggang ngayon ay

113

tinuloy nila, hanggang ngayon makikita niyo kung... Sa mga oras na ito

114

makikita niyo kung papaano ang paglapastangan ng Chrysalis Academy sa

115

utos ng DENR na itigil ang kanilang pagsasara. At makikita mo naman ito e,

116

common sense lang ang gagamitin mo, makikita mo, talagang kikilabutan ka.

117

R:

Opo. Ayon po sa isang statement na binigay ng isang opisyal sa Chrysalis ,

118

base sa [ACN], isang school paper, dini-deny po ng Chrysalis Administration

119

na may nagaganap na construction work or pag-expand ng kanilang territory

120

doon po sa, doon po sa kanilang lugar, so ano po ang inyong masasabi dun?

121

I:

Yun nga ang nakakatawa. Dine-deny nila samantalang natatakpan yung ilog.

122

Nakikita mo na ba, paano natapos ang isang ilog ay natakapan ng isang

123

napakalaking construc-- konkreto kung hindi ginagawa? DENR ang mismong

124

makakapagsabi na dahil sa ongoing ang construction noon nung magpunta

125

ang DENR. Ang natatawa lamang ako ay bakit walang ngipin ang DENR na

126

ipatigil, dahil sila ay natatakot siguro o may iniiwasan sila na pwersa na

127

nagmumula sa may ari ng Chrysalis Academy na si Mayor Gorospe.

128

R:

Opo.

129

I:

Kita ng mga mata ng mga inspektor ng DENR. Kaya sila ay nag-issue na itigil

130

ang construction bakit nila ide-deny e nakikita na nga ng inspektor na

131

ongoing yung construction? In fact may mga picture kami na ongoing yung

-more-

125

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132

construction. May picture kami at may picture din and DENR kaya isang

133

malaking kalokohan ang ginagawa ng Chrysalis , ng pamunuan ng Chrysalis

134

Academy. Yun lang.

135

R:

Sir Placido, bilang isa sa mga leader sa komunidad ng Sitio Basi na nanguna

136

sa pagprotesta sa pag-construct ng creek, ng box culvert sa creek, ng takip,

137

ano po yung mga konkretong ginawa niyo upang iparating yung inyong

138

pagtutol? Paano ninyo kinommunicate yung inyong pagtutol?

139

I:

Una, una, bukod dun sa idinaan namin sa liham, pangalawa ay idinaan namin

140

sa DENR dahil sa kinakailangan may mamagitan sa amin kung kami mag-

141

uusap. Humingi kami ng dayalogo sa pam-- sa... Minabuti ko na sa

142

pamamagitan ng DENR, sila ang mag-gigitna sa amin. Sapagkat tinitiyak ko na

143

hindi magiging mabuti ang usapan kung sila at kami lamang ang mag-uusap.

144

Tinitiyak ko kami ay tatapakan lamang ng kanilang pwersa. Samantalang

145

kung may mamagitan sa aming departamento ng gobyerno, maaring maging

146

mabuti ang usapan.

147

R:

At ano pong inaasahan niyo noon ng mapagdesisyunan niyong kunin natin

148

ang DENR, kausapin natin sila upang mamagitan sa atin at sa lokal na

149

pamahalaan o sa pamahalaan ng Chrysalis , ano ang naging expectation niyo

150

nung mga panahong iyon?

151

I:

Ang ine-expect ko na sana ay dadalo sila sa ise-set na pagpupulong ng DENR.

152

Subalit hindi... Walang sino man ang sa kanila ang um-attend, kahit na yung

153

kanilang engineer, na ngayon ay engineer din ng Municipality of La Merced,

154

hindi sila um-attend sa dayalogo.Patuloy nilang binabalewala ang anyaya ng

155

DENR. Isang uri ng pambabastos, na kung ikaw ay inaanyayahan para sa

156

isang dayalogo dahil para may usaping tatapu--aayusin, hindi sila

157

humaharap, sapagkat kinakayang-kayanan lang nila ang Departamento (sic)

158

ng DENR.

159
160

R:

So nagparating sila, sinabi niyo kanina nagparating kayo ng liham sa

Chrysalis
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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...777

[College], nagparating kayo...

161
162

I:

[Yeah oo] Certified True Copy

163

R:

Opo.

164

I:

Ah ano, received pa ni Ms. Garcia.

165

R:

Opo.

166

I:

Nireceive ito ng sekretarya ni Mayor. Nireceive ito ng barangay. Nireceive ito

ng school ng Chrysalis .

167
168

R:

Opo.

169

I:

Subalit ayaw nilang humarap.

170

R:

Ano pong nakasaad dun sa liham na ipinarating niyo po sa kanila?

171

I:

Nakasaad dun na kung maaring pag-usapan o para ipatupad yung nais ng

DENR na ihinto ang pagtatakip ng ilog.

172
173

R:

Oho.

174

I:

Subalit hindi sila... ini-ignore lang nila.

175

R:

Oho.

176

I:

Oo. Isang malaking kalapastanganan sa DENR ang kanilang ginawa ng mga

panahong iyon. [Kung kaya sinabi ng DENR]

177
178

R:

179

I:

R:

Oho. OK. Yung sinabi niyo na in-ignore, ano pong ibig sabihin nun? Wala pong
reply na kayo... wala pong reply kayong natanggap mula sa kanila?

182
183

Kung kaya sinabi ng DENR nakung kami ay mag-aaklas ay sila na lang ay

papanig sa amin. Yun na lang ang maitutulong ng DENR.

180
181

[So ibig sabihin na...]

I:

Yes, walang reply at hindi... hindi... Ni-receive nila pero hindi sila nagpunta.
Sa...

184
185

R:

Sa'n po?

186

I:

Sa...sa parang ah... How do we call it?

-more-

127

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187

R:

Ito po ba yung technical conference?

188

I:

Yes. Hindi naman ito subpoena masasabi diba? Ito ay pag-aanyaya ng DENR,
pero hindi sila dumalo.

189
190

R:

Sino lamang po ang dumalo?

191

I:

Kami lamang ni... Nung mga oras na yun ang dumalo lamang ay si:: Mrs.

192

Socorro Lim para sa aming, sa aming grupo yun ang um-attend. Marami

193

kaming um-attend. Bale hindi sila... Sa panig nila sa Chrysalis Academy o kay

194

Mayor, walang um-attend. Pero nagbigay din kami ng sulat sa munisipyo para

195

sila anyayahan at the same time na Chrysalis , munisipyo, barangay, at kami

196

magharap sa dayalogo, hindi sila um-attend. Obvious naman talagang mali.

197

Nahihiya naman sila.

198

R:

sa issue-ng ito. Kayo po ba ay na-satisfy o hindi sa kanilang ginawa?

199
200

So ano po ang masasabi niyo sa, sa ginawa ng DENR sa buong prosesongito,

I:

Actually, hindi, hindi talaga ako na-satisfy kaya nakapagsabi nga ako na

201

"Nagkamali ba ako ng tanggapan na pinuntahan?" Dahil inaakala ko na may

202

ngipin ang DENR para sa mga ganitong mga problema, subalit may

203

hangganan pala ang kanilang, ang kanilang departamento. Napakaliit ng

204

kanilang pwersa para sa mga ganitong problema. Dahil sa hindi daw, wala

205

daw silang karapatan na tibagin ang isang, ang isang ah: ginawang

206

konstruksyon na makakasama sa bayan, halimbawa gaya ng pagawa ng box

207

culvert, paliitin mo ang ilog. Kung nakita mong may violation, hindi sila ang

208

may karapatan para mag-giba kundi ang local government. Papaano kung ang

209

may violation ay local government? Natawa na lang ako nung sinabi nila na

210

"Yun ang problema, hindi na namin sakop yun." So dun ako nawalan ng pag-

211

asa, na...

212

R:

213

I:

Walang sakop, hindi sakop ng DE[NR...]

[ng DENR] yung pag-giba dun sa

214

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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...999

215

konstruksyon na yun, kung hindi, ang may karapatan daw mag-giba nun ay

216

LG, local government. Papaano nga kung ang namumuno sa local

217

government ang may violation niyan? Sabi nila "Kaya mag-aklas na lang

218

kayo."

219

R:

220

I:

Yun po ang sinabi [talaga] sa inyo? Sino po ang nagsabi sa inyo nito?
[Oo, yes] Yung direktor sa DENR na baba-- nalimutan ko

221

ang exact name, pero nakasulat yun sa papers. Sinabi niya na "Sige mag-aklas

222

na lang kayo, suportahan namin kayo. Sama kami."

223

R:

Oho.

224

I:

So sabi ko, "Hindi ba pwedeng, may ngipin kayong na ipahinto o gibain kung

225

sadyang babaha, kung nakita niyo namang bumabaha dahil gawa nun?"

226

"Hindi e, kasi dapat LG ang gumiba nun." E paano kung LG nga yung may

227

violation? heh heh Dun ako natatawa, medyo nakakalito.

228

R:

Opo. Yun po ba ay, yun po bang ganung pagdadahilan nila ay naintindihan

niyo o hindi?

229
230

I:

Hindi. Hindi ko naintindihan, actually...

231

R:

Ibig kong sabihin tinanggap niyo po ba yun o hindi?

232

I:

Kasi, patay-malisya na lang tayo. Tinanggap dahil wala silang magawa.

233

R:

Oho. Ano po ba dapat ang ginawa nila?

234

I:

Kaya lang, ang dapat na tanong mo diyan ay ano ang interpretasyon ko dun sa
kanilang...

235
236

R:

Oho.

237

I:

Maaring... maraming pwedeng maging interpretasyon, hindi ba? Maaring

238

kaya sila ay limitado ang kanilang galaw ay sa mayroon silang napapalang

239

pakinabang, diba? May pakinabang silang napapala o dili kaya sila'y

240

nababalahibuhan sapagkat saalam naman nila na malaki ang masasakop, ang

241

sakop ng mahinaryang ito ay, ang makinaryang ito ay malaki, kung baga

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nababalahibuhan sila dahil sa malaking isda yung kanilang binabangga. Yun

243

yung mga bagay na naglalaro sa aking isipan na nakakalungkot. Dahil

244

sanagpapabalahibo sila, hindi nila kayang ganapin ang kanilang tungkulin. E

245

samantalang sila'y naririyan upang protektahan ang, ang ah:: ating

246

environment. E nalalapastangan nang harap-harapan e, dinudunogna sa

247

kanilang harapan e hind pa nila maprotektahan, hindi nila maipagtanggol.

248

R:

Opo.

249

I:

Kawawa naman tayo kung ganoon lahat ng magsisilbi sa atin.

250

R:

Opo. Yung nabanggit niyo kaninang samahan ng mga nag-protesta dun sa

251

pag-- dun sa pagtatakip ng creek, ilan po ba ang tinutukoy natin dito sa

252

grupong ito? Sa samahang ito?

253

I:

Ah, mga almost ah, 200. 200 na miyembro ko ang against that. Actually bago
pa sumama sa protesta e pumirma silang lahat.

254
255

R:

256

I:

Ito po ba ay mga residente ng [Sitio Basi?]

[Residente.] Oo, residente lahat ng Sitio Basi.
Ah, 'di pa kabilang dun yung mga nasakanugnog na apektadong pook.

257
258

R:

Oho.

259

I:

Tanging mga residente lang ang mga pinili kong pumirma.

260

R:

Oho. [Nagkaroon] po ng signature campaign [po] ba ito?

261

I:

[So bukod pa...]

[Yes] Oo, masyadong madami e.

262

Dahil, dahil hindi namang kinakailangan maging matalino para 'pag nakita

263

mo yung isang proyekto yun e malaman mo kung nakabubuti o nakasasama.

264

R:

Oho.

265

I:

Obvious na makasasama. Pero hindi pa rin nila napahinto dahil sa sila'y

nabalahibuhan.

266
267
268

R:

Ah, ano po...Dun po sa mga naipulong... Ito po bang mga residenteng ito ay
pinulong ninyo para mapagusapan po yung issue?

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269

I:

Ah nagsimula na magkaroon ng pulong-pulong na yan dahil dun nung

270

nakakaramdam na sila ng, kami, nakakaramdam na kami ng panganib dahil

271

sa kaunting ambon lang, kaunting ulan ay lumalaki yung i-- yung tubig. So

272

naobserbahan ng bawat residente na "Aba delikado nga tayo! Bakit

273

tinatakpan?" So bilang residente, syempre kami-kami concerned sabawat isa

274

kaya nagkaroon ng pagpupulong. At: sa:: sa pagpupulong na yun, lumabas

275

ang mga daing na, na::, lumabas ang mga leakage na talagang gusto kaming

276

paalisin ng Chrysalis Academy para sa kanilang pagpapalawak ng lugar. Sila'y

277

nanghihinayang, gusto nilang makuha yung, yung:: kaunting ilog dahil kung

278

matatakpan mo yan ay makakakuha ka dun ng almost, ipalagay natin mga

279

2000 na square meter, malaking bagay din sa kanila.

280

R:

Oho.

281

I:

Nag-aalangan sila. Kaya lang ang isasakripisyo nila kami.

282

R:

Opo.

283

I:

Kasi yung mga residente dun ay nakatira saeasement, sa gilid ng ilog.

284

R:

Oho.

285

I:

Pero yung mga nakatira dun ay sila yung nagpo-protect sa ilog.

286

R:

Opo.

287

I:

Sila nagme-maintain sa kalinisan. Hindi nila tinatakpan.

288

R:

Oho.

289

I:

Pero sa dahil iniinteres nila, ang gusto nila ay mapa-alis ang mga nakatira
doon at takpan ng buo; kadagdagan sa kanilang lote.

290
291

R:

Opo.

292

I:

Ia-adjust nila ang kanilang bakod.

293

R:

Oho. Sir Placido, base rin sa research ko, kayo daw ay nagpalagay ng

294

tarpaulin, dalawang tarpaulin sa unahan ng Chrysalis Academy. Maari niyo

295

bang ikwento sa amin yun?

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296

I:

Yung tarpaulin na iyon, yun yung letter ng DENR, na ang nilalaman ay

297

ipinatitigil ang kanilang proyekto dahil sa ito ay makakaperwisyo sa sa...

298

bukod sa iligal ay makakaperwisyo sa--

299

R:

Oho,

300

I:

Sa taong bayan. Pina--, pina-tarpaulin ka lang yung sulat ng DENR.

301

R:

Tapos sino po ang naglagay sa tarpaulin?

302

I:

E hindi ako makakitang puno. Inutos ko kay Zaldy Fe. Paglagay niya,

303

napadaan yung secretary ng Chrysalis , nakunan siya ng picture, kaya

304

nakasama siya sa problema. Dapat ako lang talaga ang dudukutin.

305

R:

Oho.

306

I:

Sinabi naman ng mga pulis na "Nadamay ka lang. Dapat ito lang ang
dudukutin."

307
308

R:

Oho.

309

I:

Nakakalungkot din kasi may pamilya yung tao.

310

R:

Oho.

311

I:

Although kasama rin siya sa ipinaglalaban ko, dahil siya, sila'y residente rin

312

dun, e mas mabuti sana ako na lang mag-isa ang naririto kesa naman siya'y

313

kasama na meron siyang mga anak na nahihirapan din. Diba? Napakadami

314

ding pinahirapan ng kaganapang yan. Ng mga nagpagamit na pulis at ng

315

tiwaling, tiwaling alkalde natin. Hindi na nila inisip ang mga pamilya nilang

316

sisirain sa kanilang mga plano. Siguro naman ay sapat ang kanilang

317

kayamanan para sila makabili pa ng lote. Hindi naman nila kinakailangan

318

pang tumapak ng mga mahihirap para sila'y... Nakakalungkot.

319

R:

Oho.

320

I:

Unang-una kay Zaldy na nautusan ko lang, tapos e::: napapabayaan mo yung

321

pamilya mo dahil sa mga ganung kaganapan lang. Yan ang maramingmga

322

hindi naiintindihan ng iba na naganap, at maari pang maganap sa iba.

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323

Kung 'di mauunawaan ng tao ang pag-aasal ng mga taong yan, ng ating

324

kapulisan at ng ating alkalde.

325

R:

Mahalaga po ba ang pagpaparating ng protesta doon sa mga taong dapat

326

malaman yun? Mahalaga po ba ang pag-communicate, kung opo, gaano po

327

siya kahalaga? Kung hindi po, bakit hindi po siya mahalaga?

328

I:

Meaning sa mga kasama ko o sa...?

329

R:

Sa inyo, bilang ah... sa inyo pong samahan.

330

I:

Ah sa aming komunidad?

331

R:

Opo.

332

I:

Ah napakahalagang malaman nila yung, yung, yung...

333

R:

Yung pagpaparating po, yung pagko-communicate nung pag-tutol. Gaano po

yun kahalaga? Kung mahalaga po yun para sa inyo?

334
335

I:

Sapagkat maraming, maraming kasama ko sa komunidad ang hindi nila

336

namamalayang yun yung mga nangyayari dahil sa sila'y abala sa

337

paghahanapbuhay para maitaguyod ang kanilang pamilya, hindi naman na

338

nila priority na yung kung minsan, mga bagay na importante, hindi nila

339

namamalayan na importante rin sa pamumuhay natin ngayon. Sapagkat

340

katulad ng, kung sila'y babahain, maaring, maaring malunod ang kanilang

341

mga anak o maaring ikasira ng kanilang ipinundar na kagamitan sa bahay na

342

pinaghirapan din naman nila, pinag-gugulan ng pawis at dugo. Isang

343

pagprotekta mo rin yun sa'yong pamilya e. Na hindi nila namamalayan na

344

kung sino man yung nakakamalay, yung may kamalayan sa ganung bagay

345

edapat ipaunawa mo yun sa kaniya para sila'y mamulat na, na

346

nalalapastangan ka pala hindi mo lang namamalayan. At tsaka kung, katulad

347

ko, halimbawang ako, nakita ko na tayo nilalapastangan ng sino man, hindi ko

348

naman siya kayang banggain sapagkat ako'y nag-iisa, mahina.

349

R:

Oho.

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350

I:

Samantalang kung mapaparating ko sa mga kinauukulan katulad ko, kami'y

dadami.

351
352

R:

Oho.

353

I:

Lalakas kami. Dapat i-educate mo sila na "Uy, alam mo ba na kapag umulan ay

354

mawawala ang lahat ng pinaghirapan mong yan dahil sa sinasara ang

355

ilog?""Bakit?""Sinasaran na ang ilog. Dapat malaman mo yan." "Ganun ba, ay

356

tutulan natin yan." So dalawa na kayo. Oo. Kung makakarating pa sa iba,

357

dadami kayo. Magiging madali ang pagkilos. Yun lang naman ang aking

358

concern, community concern ko lang yun. Kasi pangit naman yung buhay mo

359

ay wala kang concern sa kapitbahay mo diba? Yun lang.

360

R:

Oho.

361

I:

Nakakalungkot lang na sa ganung kaigsing pakikibaka e dito kami pinulot sa

362

kulungan pero hindi ako nagsisisi. Hindi ako nagsisisi.Kung maulitman yung

363

pagkakataon ay ganun pa rin ang desisyon ko.

364

R:

Oho. So yung kinukwento niyo po kanina na pagpaparating ng issue sa inyong

365

mga kasama, doon sa mga kapwa niyo residente sa Sitio Basi, gaano naman

366

po kahalaga, kung mahalaga po talaga para sa inyo, yung pagpaparating ng

367

protesta sa kinauukulan, sa Chrysalis Academy, dun sa sitwasyon, dun sa

368

konteksto ng ating pinagusapan.

369

I:

Napakahalaga ng pagpaparating na yan sa kanila ng protesta kasi umaasa

370

kami na sa ganung paraan ay ititigil nila. Kasi dinaan ko na sa paupo, dinaan

371

ko na sa tamang venue, gusto ko ng dayalogo para malaman nila, maunawaan

372

nila na tumututol kami, para itigil. Ayaw nila sa ganun, sa ganung venue, 'di sa

373

kalsada namin idadaan, diba? Yun lang naman yun e. Kaya napakahalaga para

374

sa amin kasi umaasa kami na itigil kasi yung... ang itigil lang naman nila, yun

375

lang naman ang gusto namin e. Hindi naman namin kinukwestiyon kung

376

gaano sila karaming ninakaw na pera sa gobyerno, kung paano nila na

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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...151515

377

natikhaang Chrysalis Computer diba? Wala na kaming pakialam dun. Yun,

378

dun

379

lang kami sa direktang makakaapekto sa amin diba? Kaya mahalaga rin para

380

sa amin yung mga bagay na iyon. Yung makakarating sa kanila.

381

R:

magprotesta? Ano pong nag-udyok sa inyo na lumaban?

382
383

Ano po ang nag-udyok sa inyo na tumutol? Ano po umudyok sa inyo na

I:

Unang-una, ako yung unang-unang maaapektuhan. Hindi sa pagsisinungaling.

384

Ako yung direktang unang-unang maaapektuhan sapagkat ako yung unang

385

bahay na matutumbok ng kanilang proyekto.Kaya ako yung unang tumututol.

386

Ganun lang kasimple ang paliwanag ko dun. Wala ng ibang dahilan. Kaya ako

387

tumututol dahil sa una, ako ang maaapektuhan, pangalawa maaapektuhan

388

ang buong kanayunan, buong komunidad dahil sa babahain, babaha.Sino ba

389

naman ang gusto ng baha?Kaya tumutol ako. Likas lang talaga sa akin yung,

390

yung, maski nung mga panahon ako nag-aaral, likas sakin yung 'pag alam

391

kong nasa tama ako, OK lang sa akin na masaktan ako o masakripisyo ang

392

kahit na anong meron ako, basta gusto ko talaga nalaban. Kaya siguro umabot

393

sa ganito. Sa katunayan nga e sa kakulitan ko sa paglaban sa kanila e, kung

394

sinu-sino na mga ginamit nilang mga tao para magdala ng pera para ibenta ko

395

lamang ang aking mga kapitbahay. Hindi ako bumigay, hindi ako bumigay,

396

para, kaya siguro kaya ganun ang daling sa'kin, binigyan nila ako ng

397

ultimatum na ikulong na yan. Ikulong na yan.

398

R:

Maari niyo ba ikwento pa sa amin yun?

399
400

Oho. May nabanggit po kayo nung bata pa kayo lumalaban na kayo. An--

I:

Hindi naman. Yung halimbawa kagaya nung nasa eskuwelahan, kasi naging

401

leader din ako ng buong La Merced, ng high school ako, ako naging

402

presidente rin ng mga estudyante.

403

R:

Ah ok. Saan po yan? San po ba kayo...?

404

I:

[Barangay, barangay.]
-more
135

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...161616

405

R:

Ah sa [Barangay]. Sa -- Sa [La Merced National High School] po ba ito?

406

I:

[Barangay] pa nun. [Hindi pa...]

407

R:

408

I:

[La Merced Barangay.]

409

R:

Oho, oho.

410

I:

Naging presidente ako ng estudyante nun. Isang taon lang tapos ah: sa...

[Oho. Barangay pa ho nun.]

411

Huwag na nating ungkatin dahil ma-- nakakahiya naman sa mga teacher na

412

pinatalsik ko noon.

413

R:

Oho. Bakit? Bakit ho?

414

I:

E:: sa mga ano rin, sa mga, mga mali, mga mali nilang nagawa.

415

R:

Ito po ay sa high school rin po?

416

I:

Yes.

417

R:

Oho.

418

I:

Pangit namang banggitin kasi nga may pamilya na sila.

419

R:

Oho.

420

I:

Yun lang. Kung baga, yun ang aking likas na ano ako e, yung ayokong nakikita
kong mali e hindi ko pa papansinin.

421
422

R:

Oho. Ano kaya ang mga nag-impluwensiya sa inyo na magkaroon ng ganyang

423

uri ng pag-iisip na kailangan lumaban kapag may mali? Ano po yung mga

424

dahilan?Ano po yung mga impluwensiya?Kung meron po?

425

I:

Wala naman. Ano lang talaga, yung, yung likas lang talaga sa akin na ayokong

426

napapamunuan ng mali. Ayoko nung pinasusunod ako ng mali. Mas gusto ko

427

yung matuwid yung namumuno sa akin, dapat ako yung nagva-violate. heh

428

heh heh

429

R:

Oho. oho.

430

I:

Hindi pwede yung napakawalang hiya ng namumuno sa akin.

431

R:

Oho. Ilarawan niyo nga po sa amin ang kundisyon ng La Merced noon at

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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...171717

ngayon. Meron po bang pagbabago?

432
433

I:

Malaki, malaki. Noon ang mga taga-La Merced ay walang batik, walang batik,
dahil ...

434
435

R:

Ano po ibig sabihin nun?

436

I:

Kumbaga, kasi may mga lumabas na katotohanan na sinasabi na, na ang La

437

Merced ay pumangit ang image, ang imahe ngayon, pumangit ang La Merced

438

sapagkat may mga dumating na dayuhan na may dalang mansanas. Kumbaga

439

para silang mga, mga demonyo o hudas na may dalang mansanas

440

paratuksuhin ang mga nanahimik sa La Merced. In fact, nasa hula nga daw

441

yan ng ano e, ng Criselda na maraming darating ditong dayuhan at

442

mapapalayas pa ang mga likas na taga-La Merced. Nangyayari na ito, katulad

443

halimbawa ng may dumating na dayo, sila na ngayon ang namumuno at

444

sinabi na ang mga taga-La Merced ay mukhang pera. Napakadaling bilhin.

445

R:

Naniniwala po ba kayo dun?

446

I:

Ah, hindi hindi. Kaya nga binigyan ko sila ng example na hinahatagan nila ako

447

ng pera pero hindi ko tinanggap. Nakakalungkot na ganun. Kaya ang La

448

Merced noon ay isang larawan ng, 'pag sinabi mong La Merced nandiyan ang

449

UP La Merced.Lugar ng mga matatalino, diyan hinuhubog ang mga bago

450

nating mga syen--, scientists, diyan hinuhubog ang mga bagong leader,

451

diba?Samantalang ng minsan may dumating lamang na may dalang mansanas

452

ay sinabing madaling matukso; nabibili ang mga taga-La Merced.

453

Nakakalungkot. Yan, may mga ganyang kumento. Nakakalungkot at marami

454

pa silang mga plano. Bukod sa kanila ay mara-- baka may mga dumating pa,

455

kaya dapat maging alerto ang mga taga-La Merced na unti-unti may mga

456

dumadating na dayuhan na siyang wawakas sa, sa:: kasaysayan ng taal ng

457

taga-La Merced.

458

R:

Opo.

459

I:

Katulad halimbawa ng ating munisipyo. Makikita mo,hindi naman taga-Los

-more
137

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...181818

460

Baos ang mga empleyado, diba?Makikita mo mga establisyimento, mga--

461

kagaya ng eskwelahan ng Chrysalis , 'di naman taga-La Merced ang

462

nagtatrabaho.

463

Ah mga mapagpanggap silang mga yan. Yun ang dapat na, na maipaalala sa

464

mga likas, mga taal nga taga-La Merced, na baka sila'y nadadaya sa mga

465

pangako. Pero mas malaki ang mawawala sa kanila kaysa sa kanilang

466

natatanggap.

467

R:

Oho. Sir Placido, kayo po ay myembro ng Kasangga, isa pong militant group,

468

no Sir? Paano po kapag may nagsabi na "Ay yang si Placido Katimbang ay,

469

kaya naman ganyan mag-isip kasi aktibista." Ano pong, ano pong masasabi

470

niyo dun?

471

I:

Lahat naman pwede magkumento ng ganun pero kung makikita naman ng--

472

Kagaya mo, baka ikaw nagresearch, nakita mo naman siguro yung culvert no?

473

At kung titignan mo ang loob ng Chrysalis , yung building na nakita mo na

474

Chrysalis , ang ilalim nun ay ilog. Ayon sa batas, kung si Henry Sy nga na

475

business tycoon ng Pilipinas, hindi nilapastangan ang ilog sa Calamba, bakit

476

ang Chrysalis pwede?Kasi nabili, nabili nila ang mga nagtatrabaho sa

477

munisipyo. Nabili nila e. Dahil hindi naman taal na taga-La Merced ang mga

478

yan, nabili nila, hindi tumututol. Samantalang ito, isang, common sense lang.

479

Kung yung ilog, yun ang sinabi ko sa DENR, " Kung yung ilog ay pwedeng

480

tirahan ng napakayamangtao kagaya nila, bakit hindi natin hayaan tirahaan

481

ng mga mahihirap?" Diba? Ibig sabihin, yan bang mayaman na yan e squatter

482

din yun, diba? Dahil di naman kayo-- gobyerno may ari nun e ginawan ng

483

building sa ibabaw.

484

R:

Oho.

I:

Bakit 'di na lang hayaan natin ibigay sa mga mahihirap yan, ilagay lang natin
sila sa lugar, diba? Turuan lang natin sila ng tamang pag-lugar doon sa ilog,
tamang pag-maintaina. Bakit natin ibibigay yung pag-aari ng gobyerno dun sa
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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...191919

485

mga taga-Chrysalis ? Hindi ba nga unfair yun? Kaya naman nila bumili ng

486

maraming lupa e. E pag-aari ng gobyerno-- May violation daw ang Chrysalis

487

dun. Ang multa daw ay P50, 000 lang. Sabi ng DENR. Sabi ko,"So kung ganun

488

e..."

489

R:

Multa po sa?

490

I:

Sa pag-violate nila ng pagtatakip ng ilog at pagtatayo ng establisyimento

491

diyan, ng building, ang violation na yun ay may karag-- may karampatang

492

parusa na P50, 0000. So ibig sabihin, sabi ko " Kung yung organisasyon ko ay

493

magbigay ng P50, 000 para sa violation, pati kamo sa mga taong yan, pwede

494

ho yun? 'Di kaya mali yang ipinatutupad niyong batas na yan?" Diba? Sa

495

lawak ng ilog na-- Kasi magmula dun sa, sa aking bahay hanggang dun sa

496

likod ng Kalaw Lumber, ilog yun na tinakpan ng Chrysalis . Napakalawak nun.

497

Ilang square meter yun na dapat ay nakatiwangwang yun na open.

498

R:

Oho.

499

I:

Pero ginawa nila'y tinakpan, ginawang building. Sabi ng DENR, sila mismo

500

nagsasabi violation talaga. P50, 000 lang daw ang multa. E kung ganun e 'di

501

magmumulta ako ng P50, 000, patitirahan ko yan, diba? O yun ay isang

502

dahilan na lang para sa akin para sila'y maka-escape na lang sa mga tanong

503

ko.

504

R:

Oho.

505

I:

'Di pa rin klaro sa'kin yun kasi nakulong ako agad e. Sana e linawin nila. Pero

506

ang malinaw sa kanilang sinabi ay wala na silang magagawa, sila'y sasama na

507

lamang sa pag-aaklas. Nakakalungkot. DENR. Opisinahan ng DENR e sasama

508

sa pag-aaklas sa amin, wala silang ngipin e nakakalungkot diba? Saan ka

509

lalapit?

510

R:

511

I:

512

R:

Saan nga po ba [lalapit?]Ano pong sagot niyo dun?

[heh heh heh]
Saan nga po ba lalapit? Ano pong sagot niyo dun?
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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...202020

513

I:

Ah 'di dalin mo sa kalsada para may makarinig, baka may makarinig na, na

514

malinis ang kunsensyang emlpeyado ng gobyerno na siyang makapagtuturo

515

kung papaano ipahihinto o makapagtuturo kung sinong tao ang makapag--

516

makatutulong na ipahinto ang mga ganyang gawain, diba? Kasi mismo sila

517

nagsasabi 'di nila kaya. Nababalahibo na sila dahil talaga namang malakas

518

yung sa-- Bukod sa maraming pera... E unang-una kung gagaling ka sa CMBP,

519

yan ang hingian na LGU, ng Local Government Unit, hingian yan ng

520

ambulansya, hingian yan ng mga sasakyan. Kaya ang lahat ng mga kawani ng

521

gobyerno ay may utang na loob sa CMBP. Papaano mo-- Saan kang ahensya

522

ng gobyerno hihingi ng tulong, samantalang may utang na loob sila sa CMBP.

523

Ganyan ang, yan ang chain ng ano e, ng problema? Wala kang masulinganna

524

hihingan ng tulong dahil sa lahat, halos lahat ay may utang na loob sa CMBP.

525

R:

Ano po ba ang ibig sabihin ulit ng nababalahibuhan?

526

I:

Ah, hindi sila makakilos dahil sila'y takot dahil sa alam nilang malaking tao
yung kanilang, malaking isda ang kanilang babanggain.

527
528

R:

sarili niyo na hindi takot?

529
530

Bakit may mga hindi takot na kagaya niyo? Makokonsidera niya po ba ang

I:

Oo. Kasi, ang katwiran ko kasi masarap lumaban sa malaki, masarap lumaban
sa malaki, hindi masakit matalo.

531
532

R:

Bakit po?

533

I:

Ah, masarap lumaban ng dehado, kapag nanalo ka maipagmamalaki mo sa

534

sarili mo. Kaysa naman yung ikaw ay liyamado, kapag natalo ka mismo sa

535

sarili mo mahihiya ka, diba? E tsaka kapag nasa tama ka e hidni ako

536

nakakaramdam ng takot. Kahit na nung kuhanin ako ng mga pulis hindi ako

537

nakaramdam ng takot, hindi, hindi pa pumapatak ang luha ko dito sa

538

kulungan.'Di pa pumapatak. Kahit, kahit dumaan ang pasko na wala ka sa

-more-

140

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...212121

539

pamilya mo, dumaan ang bagong taon. Halos lahat ng tao diyan umiiyak,

540

ngayon ako ay hindi dahil iniisip ko na, na may biyayang mas magandang

541

darating sa akin kung itutuloy ko ang laban kaysa kung ako ay papadaya sa

542

kanila na hinahainan ka ng pera kapalit ng dangal. Mas ano ako, mas enjoy

543

ako, mas masarap manalo, kaysa dun sa perang kapalit.

544

R:

Bakit po mas enjoy? Bakit po mas masarap?

545

I:

Ano ko yun sa sarili ko yun e. Mas, para bang mas masarap ang pakiramdam

546

yung manalo sa laban kaysa yung nanalo ka, may tinanggap ka, ma-- 'di ako

547

nasisiyahan. Parang, parang isang quality ng tao yun e, na mga taong

548

nasisiyahan. May prinsipyo.

549

R:

Oho.

550

I:

Kaysa naman yung tumatanggap ng pera. Galit ako sa taong ganun e. Nabibili.

551

Kapag ang tao nabibili, maliit lang ang tingin ko e. Pero kapag ang tao e may

552

prinsipyo e, may dangal e, kahit pa yun ay walang kayamanan sa lupang 'to,

553

tingin ko diyan ay poging-pogi.

554

R:

Oho, oho, oho.

------------- Start of conversation with Mrs. Lilia Katimbang (Interviewee 2)-----------------

555

Interviewee 2:Hi!

556

R:

557

I2:

558

R:

Tita! How are you Tita? Nadito na ko'Di na ko nagpaalam sa in[yo dahil]
[Oo nga]
tuloy-tuloy ang schedule ko. Sobrang tuloy-tuloy ang schedule ko, Tita.

559

Tsumetsempo lang talaga ako. Ayun po, tuloy-tuloy ang pag-iinterview.

560

Nakaka-42 minutes na po kami.

561

I2:

562

R:

Uy matagal ka na [pala dito]

[Alam niyo] ba Tita na...?
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Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...222222

563

I2:

Hinde.

564

R:

Oo,sana pala tinext muna kita no Tita? But anyway, tuloy-tuloy kasi Tita
talaga ang aking schedule kaya [dumiretso na ko,] oho.

565
566

I2:

567

R:

[Dumiretso ka na?]
Ayun Tita, ng isang araw pumunta na rin po ako dito, si Warden nagpa-

568

require ng letter galing sa Dean namin. Ayan pinirmahan naman ni Dean,

569

pinirmahan din ng adviser ko. So alam na ng College na nandito ako, nagko-

570

conduct ng interview. So may [basbas na ng college.]

571

I2:

[Parang ang Zoom nandito] ng isang araw.

572

R:

Ang alin po?

573

I2:

Yung Zoom? Last week yata yun.

574

R:

Zoom Out po ba to?

575

I2:

Yung last week...

576

R:

Oho?

577

I2:

Nakasalubong ko sila diyan sa gate.

578

R:

Ah opo. Ang alam ko po na darating ay yung ah, yung newspaper po ng ....

[Iko-cover] din po nila yung story.

579
580

I2:

581

R:

[?] ?
Yes po Tita. Opo. [ACN]. So, dahil yung ilang staff, yung editor in chief nila ay

582

lumapit sa akin, kasi alam nila na nag-iinterview ako dito, sinabi ko sa kanila

583

na mag-prepare ng letter na isa-sign ni Dean. So yun po, yun lang naman ang

584

sinabi ko sa kanila so darating sila dito para mag-interview Tita. Ayun po. At

585

napaka-cooperative ni Tito nga, oho. For the first time e nakita ko na siya.

586

I2:

Heh heh heh

587

R:

Last time, last time yung first time diba Tito? Oho. Tapos medyo alam naman-

588

- Nakekwento niyo naman Tita ano?

-more-

142

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...232323

589

I2:

Oo.

590

R:

Kaya medyo may idea si Tito. Although medyo nabigla rin siya kasi...

591

I2:

Lahat kasi sinasabi ko sa kanya, mga update ng lahat.

592

R:

Oho.

593

I2:

Alam nga rin niya na aatend ka rin sana ng hearing noong ano...

594

R:

Tita, pumunta po ako. Tinext ko kayo. [Tinext ko kayo] Tita, Tita.

595

I2:

[Nagpunta ka?] Oo nga tinext mo-- kaya

lang...

596
597

R:

598

I2:

599

R:

So um-attendna lang po ako sa ibang court trial kasi first time ko po...

600

I2:

Ah oo.

601

R:

Na maka-witness ng isang [court trial.] Oo ng isang hearing.So yun po.

602

I2:

603

I:

Anong meron sayo ng Feb. 20?

604

R:

Ah kailangan po Feb. 20 maipasa na yung buong research [study. Ako] po ay

605

I:

[Hindi natuloy.]

[hearing]

[Yun ang hearing.]

[Yun ang hearing.]

606
607

Hindi natuloy diba? [Na-move.]

R:

naghahabol,[Tita.] Interview pa lang.. Ah, yun po ang hearing. Actually alam

608

ko po yun. Nili-- Nasa kalendaryo ko po yung date na yun. Oho. Pero sana po

609

makapunta rin ako, no? Oho. O dapat pumunta rin ako. Ayun Tita, kailangan

610

ko grumaduate, Tita. Heh heh heh.

611

I2:

Oo nga. Sa wakas no? Oo.

612

R:

Oho. Yun naman e, eto naman-- Basta gagawin ko yung best ko, Tito, Tita, dito
sa research study kong ito. Oho.

613
614

I:

Sana manawagan kayo ng ano, na...

615

R:

Ay OK lang Tita. Nagpaalam naman ako. Alam din naman nila na ino-audi

-more143

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...242424

record ko 'to.

616
617

I:

Na bumilis ang Judicial System sa'tin. Grabeng tagal ng proseso ng paglilitis.

618

R:

Oho. Actually tinanong ko po dun sa judge ba o sa clerk kung bakit ang layo

619

ng pagkaka-move ng time. Kasi diba po Feb. 20 pa e dapat po ay December po

620

ba or November?

621

I2:

Actually dapat December 12 may hearing siya,

622

R:

Opo.

623

I2:

Kaso nagkaroon ng emergency si Attorney.

624

R:

Opo nga. Oho.

625

I2:

Kaya 'di rin namin masisisi. Ay, January talaga walang hearing dahil? Auditing
ba?

626
627

R:

Ah oho. So February na po talaga.

628

I2:

Oo.

629

R:

Oho. Yun nga ho kaya matagal pa...

630

I2:

Kaya lang sayang talaga yung ano, yung December 12. Kasi hinabol lang
namin yun e, yung schedule na yun.

631
632

R:

Oho.

633

I2:

Talagang kalimitan e hanggang November lang ang last hearing.

634

R:

Noong araw pong yun, magki-Christmas party daw sila e, ang RTC, oho.

635

I:

Actually yung December 12 na yun ay minotion pa yun ni Attorney. Motion

for a::, for early...

636
637

I2:

Meron tayo nun e ano?

638

I:

Motion for early hearing? Tapos e na-grant naman.Pagdating naman ng

December 12 e nagkaroon naman ng emergency.

639
640

R:

Oho. Si Attorney Kapulong.

641

I:

Oo. Sayang. Nasayang yung kanyang pagod.Pero anong magagawa kapag

642

ganun e, emergency no?Ngayon ang schedule ay Feb. 20 tapos March 26.

-more144

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...252525

643

Ewan ko kung gaano pa katagal kasi ang nakakalungkot nga sa ano natin,

644

isipin mong kahit na obvious na nakita na ng judge na nagsisinungaling yung

645

pulis, siya na mismo ang nagsabi na "Hirap na hirap ka magsinungaling. 'Di ka

646

nag-practice. Halata kang nagsisinungaling." Judge ang nagsasabi. Pero hindi

647

pa rin niya pepwedeng basta tapusin ang kaso e no? May [proseso] talaga.

648

R:

[Prosesso.] Opo.

649

May proseso. Ok yun nga, nabanggit niyo Tito kanina na, Sir, kanina na may

650

nakukuha kayong saya. Mas ne-eenjoy niyo kapag lumalaban. Itong mga

651

taong ito na matapang na lumalaban ay paano nila ipinaparating yung

652

kanilang pagtutol sa mga, sa mga, injustices, sa mga hindi makatarungang

653

gawa. Paano nila pinaparating, paano nila kino-communicate yung pagtutol

654

nila sa mga ganung klaseng gawa?

655

I:

Actually, dinaan ko naman sa-- Kung sa katulad ko, dinaan ko naman sa

656

paupo kaya ako tumawag ng-- Kaya ako nagpunta sa DENR kasi yun ang

657

pinapalagay ko na tamang venue para sa pag-uusap ng, between sa amin at sa

658

Chrysalis at sa munisipyo, at sa barangay. Yun ang hiningi kong venue. Na

659

inaakala ko namang tama, ang inaakala kong mas makakabuti. Hindi nga lang

660

sila pumunta so ang susunod dun, maiisip mo talaga e para maparating mo sa

661

kanila e sa kalsada na, diba? Sa kalsada na o sa ibang paraan, dahil ayaw nila

662

sa tama, ayaw nila sa paupo. Mangangalsada ka na muna para mabulabog sila.

663

R:

Oho.

664

I:

Baka sa ganung paraan, bigyan ka nila ng pansin. Maari kasing kaya 'di sila

665

dumadalo dahil sa inaakala nila na you're just a small fry kaya 'di ka nila

666

iniintindi.

667

R:

Oho, oho.

668

I:

Pero pagka nakakabulabog ka, papansinin ka na nila.

669

R:

So napansin nga po ba nung naidala na natin sa kalsada yung ating

-more145

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...262626

pagprotesta?

670
671

I:

Actua--Napansin. Kaya sila gumawa ng malaking hakbang.Mali nga langang

672

hakbang na ginawa nila. Nagdesisyon sila ng 'di mabuti. Kagaya ng ginawa

673

nilang desisyon na matapos silang mabulabog, dapat niyo patahimikin, na

674

ikinulong kami. Gumamit sila ng kapulisan. Aminado naman yung mga pulis

675

dahil sa kahit naman ganun kawalang hiya yang mga pulis ay may konsensya

676

rin naman sinabi nila nang harapan sa amin na "Pasensya na kayo, nautusan

677

lang kami." Alam naman namin na biktima...

678

R:

Sinabi, sinabi po sa inyo yun?

679

I:

Yes. Actually nagpunta rito yung hepe, sinabi din nung Christmas Party na

680

"Alam naman namin dito na marami sa inyo na walang kasalanan. Biktima

681

lang." Nakatingin siya sa akin.Heh heh heh. Sabi ko "Anong magagawa ng pag-

682

aalo mong yan? Wala ka namang ginawa.Bagkus e, nagamit ka pa nga.

683

Makakabawas ba ng sama ng loob namin yun? O may naitulong ka ba? Wala."

684

R:

nagaganap?

685
686

Dito po sa issue dun sa creek, naniniwala po ba kayo na merong opresyon na

I:

Oo. Napakalaki. Malaking-malaki at yung pwersang ginamit nila e lumawak

687

ng lumawak kahit na maliit na baga-- maliit lang kaming kalaban niya.

688

Lumawak ng lumawak. Marami na rin siyang ginamit na tao. Marami siyang

689

inabala, ginamit.Marami rin siyang perang tinapon para, para sa amin. Kasi

690

nung una, thumbtacks lang kaming tinatapakan niya. Nung nagsama-sama na

691

kami, pako na, e gumamit na siya ng maraming tao. Basta masasabi ko sa

692

kanila e, habang may pagkakataon sila e magbago sila. Sa sino mang mga

693

taga-La Merced na makakabatid ng kaganapang ito, e sana'y huwag na silang

694

padadaya sa susunod na halalan; dahil kung sila'y nadaya minsan, huwag

695

sana maulit. Huwag sila papadala sa mga taong may dalang mansanas. Tignan

696

nila yung kasaysayan, maski sa aklat, yung may dalang, yung nag-utos na

-more146

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...272727

697

kumain ng prutas na yan e kampon ng demonyo 'yan. Nagtaka nga ako bakit

698

mansanas ang kanilang dinadala dito sa La Merced e. Parang may, may

699

pagkakahalintulad sa kasaysayan nila. Nagulat nga ako na mansanas e. May

700

pagkahalintulad nga. Tinitiyak kong 'pag nahalal pa sila e mas marami silang

701

pahihirapan. Marami ang mawawala kaysa ipakikinabang ng mga taga-La

702

Merced. At marami pang katulad ko ang magiging biktima nila.

703

R:

Ah so kung may opresyon, naniniwala po ba kayo na may nadedehado at may

704

nangdedehado? Sino-- Kung opo? Sino yung nangdedehado at sino po yun

705

nadedehado?

706

I:

Ang nangdedehado ay unang-una yung ating alkalde at ang mga nakaluklok

707

sa puwesto na kanyang nagagamit. Iyon ang mga maituturing na

708

nangdedehado. At ang nadedehado ay ang mga tao sa La Merced, sa

709

komunidad, sa paligid ng La Merced. Sila ang mga nadedehado.Sila ang mga

710

nagiging biktima. Una, ang isang halimbawa na lang ay ang masabing ikaw ay

711

madaling mabili ang taga-La Merced, isang malaking pang-aagrabyado na

712

yan, diba? Ang dating minsan 'pag narinig mo ang La Merced ay lugar ng

713

matatalinong tao, e napalitan na ngayon ng lugar ng nabibiling tao na dahil sa

714

ilang dayuhang dumating sa La Merced. Nakakalungkot yun. Iilang tao

715

bumura sa kasaysayan ng La Merced. Pwede pa makabangon ang taga-La

716

Merced kung sa maiksing panahon lang sila mananatili rito. Dapat e

717

makagawa ng hakbang ang mga taga-La Merced na itigil na ang pagtangkilik

718

sa ganyang klase ng mga tao. O kung sa laganap ang kahirapan kaya kapag

719

sila'y may haing mga pera, ibinibili ng boto, nadadaya yung mga dayuhang

720

taga-La Merced. Marami kasi ditong mga naninirahan na hindi naman taal na

721

taga-La Merced. Iyan ang mga kanilang nabibiling boto. Kagaya ng mga

722

nakatira sa riles, nakatira sa mga, mga lugar na pinupuntahan ng mga

723

dayuhan; 'di mo sasabihing dayuhan, ng mga hindi taga-La Merced, yun ang

-more147

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...282828

724

mga nabibili niyang boto. Sana'y matigil na 'yang mga yan. 'Wag ng

725

tangkilikin ang ganung klaseng tao. Yun lang.

726

R:

biktima ng opresyon?

727
728

Nakikita niyo ang-- Nakikita niyo ba ang sarili niyo ngayon na dehado? Na

I:

Oo, dehadong dehado dahil malaking bagay na ang nawala sa buhay ko. Yung

729

mahigit isang taon kang mabilanggo. Actually detention cell 'to. Maliit,

730

mahirap, maliit, masikip.Dito mo mararamdaman talaga yung pagiging

731

bilanggo dahil bilanggo,masikip. Hindi kagaya ng mga nasa malalaking bahay,

732

malaking kulungan, malaya ka nakakalakad, nakakakilos. Dito, para kang aso.

733

Tayo at umupo lang ang pwede mong gawin sa sasabihin na detention cell.

734

Isang taon kang ganito, napakahirap, hindi ba? Ah, kung ang nakakulong dito

735

ay isang rapist ay hindi pa rin bagay sa kanya ang ganitong kulungan

736

sapagkat labag pa rin sa karapatang pantao. Masyadong maliit. Lalo pa sa

737

mga taong walang kasalanan; malaking epekto sa kanya, kaya agrabyadong

738

agrabyado sa larangan ng panahon na nagugugol dito. Sa imbis na ikinita,

739

ikinita mo yun, wala. Bukod-- Bagkus e gumagastos ka pa rito. Panahon, diba?

740

Maraming pwedeng mangyari sa laya. Dito walang... Limitadoang magaganap.

741

Kung titignan mo siya nang mas malaki e pwedeng tumama ka pa sa lotto ng

742

laya dahil nakakataya ka. Dito hindi ka nakakataya, diba? O, pepwede

743

makatisod ka doon ng, ng swerte, sa araw-araw ng pakikibaka. Dito wala ka

744

dito mapapalang swerte.Yung magising ka na mabuhay ka, swerte mo

745

na.Malaki ang nawawala.Malaki ang pagkaka-agrabyado.Ako yung

746

naagrabyado.Sila yung nangaagrabyado.Na sana huwag ng madagdagan pa

747

katulad ko.

748

R:

Sa loob po ng selda, ano ang mga iniisip niyo?

749

I:

Wala, bagong pangarap. Sana ay dinggin palagi ang dasal. Na mabigyan ng

750

pagkakataong mabuhay uli sa laya. Na huwag sana makunsinti ang kawalang

-more148

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...292929

751

hiyaan ng may kagagawan ng lahat ng ito. Na huwag sana paboran ng

752

pagkakataon. Huwag sanang paboran. Kagaya ng habang ika'y nasa loob

753

yung naiisip mo na baka maari mapaboran pa na siya, mapuba-- mapaboran

754

siya sa hukom. Maaring naagrabyado ka na e lalo ka pang maagrabyado sa

755

paglilitis, diba? Mga, ang mga-- yan ang mga bagay na nakakatakot na

756

tanggapin. Lalo ka pang mababaon. Sana'y huwag. Ganyan. Panibagong

757

pangarap na sana 'pag nakalabas ka ay ito yung mga balak mo, ganyan,

758

gan'to. Pero hindi nawawala sa isip ko yung hindi ako nagsisisi sa mga

759

nangyari. Dahil kung mangyayari uli, bibigyan ng pagkakataon, kung

760

sakasakali mangyari muli ang mga bagay na yun, yun pa rin ang aking

761

gagawin. Hindi ko pinagsisisihan ang mga ginawa ko.

762

R:

Kamusta po ang, yung mga court hearings?

763

I:

Ano, nababagalan ako masyado, gawa ng, ang interval ng hearing ay isa't

764

kalahating buwan. Tapos yung mga, problema diyan yung mga reset, reset,

765

reset, may kadahilanan ang isang panig, ni-reset ng sa kabil-- sa aming panig.

766

Kapag ganun lalong tumagal ng tumagal. Pero ayon sa aking pakiramdam, sa,

767

kung babasahin ko yung body language ng; ako'y nag-aral ng body language

768

ng judge, hindi yung judge yung nag-aral ng body language sa'kin; ay

769

nasisiyahan naman ako dahil nga halata niya na nagsisinungaling yung panig

770

ng mga kapulisan. Nahahalata niya na lahat ng inihain ay gawa-gawang kaso

771

lang. Dangan nga lamangat sinasabi ng judge na, na, na tuloy-tuloy lang dapat

772

ang paglilitis para, kasi yan ang proseso. Kaya ayun. Umaasa pa rin na sana

773

madali na lang ang hearing. Ah, this coming, February 20 meron bago March...

774

R:

Ano pong oras sa February 20?

775

I:

8 am. Bago March 26, ganun din, 8 am. Yun sa mga ganun. Lagi ka merong

-more

149

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...303030

776

inspirasyon na gigising-- Gigising ka, pumipitas ka ng isang dahon ng

777

kalendaryo na-- Yun na lang ang kaligayahan ng preso e; makarating ka dun

778

sa araw ng hearing mo, dahil sa araw ng hearing mo may panibagong pag-

779

asa.Ang nakalulungkot, marami, malimit mangyari na pagdating sa araw na

780

yun,

781

nandiyan ang hindi sisipot ang pulis, hindi sisipot ang ganito. Panibagong

782

pag-asa na naman. Hanggang mapapansin mo na taon na bumi-- binibilang ng

783

isang paglilitis, hindi pa nahahatulan. Dun sa mga biktima, lalo

784

nakararamdam sila ng pagiging agrabyado, o galit sa proseso kasi "Justice

785

delay (sic), Justice denied. Kung maari nga lang, bukas nabukas e matapos na

786

diba o? 'Di ka natatakot mahatulan dahil alam mong wala kang

787

kasalanan.Bago ide-delay, made-delay ng made-delay. Yung nakaka... Ayun

788

lang.

789

R:

Ano ang tingin niyo sa hinaharap?

790

I:

Tungkol sa problema?

791

R:

Sa buhay niyo. Sa issueng ito.Sa inyong pamilya. Sa inyong mga kasama sa

Sitio Basi.

792
793

I:

Ang tingin ko, dahil sa hindi natutulog ang Diyos, ang tingin ko ay kakatigan

794

naman ako ng Diyos na mabigyan ng hustisya, diba? Unang-una, 'di lang

795

naman ako ang nagdadasal tungkol sa mga bagay na 'yan, marami, kaya

796

maaring madinig ng Diyos ang mga panalangin na sana'y mabigyan kami ng

797

hustisya. Kaya ang tingin ko sa hinaharap ay, nabawasan lang ako ng mga

798

panahon sa laya pero isa, isa itong aral na gawin kong makabuluhan lalo ang

799

mga bubunuin kong araw sa laya, kung sakaling bibigyan ako ng

800

pagkakataon. Yun ang aking tinitignan sa hinaharap.

801

R:

sabihin?Mga gusto pang idagdag?

802
803
804

Wow. Maraming salamat Sir Placido.Meron ba kayong gusto pang

I:

Ah, ano lang, panawagan ko lang na kung sa pamamagitan ninyo na

malalathala na sana'y manawagan tayo sa mga taga-La Merced na sana'y
-more150

Full Interview with Mr. Katimbang...313131

805

maging mapanuri tayo sa ating iluluklok na mamamahala sa ating bayan dahil

806

hindi biro... Tulad ng mga kaganapan ngayon, mas marami ang mawawala

807

kaysa ating makakamit kaya maselang bahagi pala talaga ng buhay ang

808

pagpili ng mga pinuno dahil marami silang maaring kuninna hindi natin

809

inaakalang kanilang pag-iinLilian, na mahalaga pala sa atin. Kung tignan lang

810

natin ay estero na iniiwasan pa natin yan kung minsan dahil mabaho, pero

811

kapag pala iyan kinuha ng mga taong may interes, malaki palang mawawala

812

sa'tin. Ngayon mo lang makikita yung kahalagahan, kung minsan , yung mga

813

bagay na ganyan, na hindi napapansin ng mga taga-La Merced. Halimbawa,

814

matuto silang mamili ng panibagong pinuno, huwag na nating bigyan ng

815

pangalawang pagkakataon yung mga minsang bumigo sa atin. Yun lang. Sana

816

maging, maging magamit kayo, para maiparating sa mga taga-La Merced yan.

817

Yun lang. Salamat.

818

R:

Maraming salamat Sir Placido Katimbang.

-end-

819
820
821
822
823
824
825
826
827
828
829
151

Interview with Mr. Zaldy Fe (I) and Mrs. Samantha Fe (I2)

2:52 pm, January 26, 2012
Duration: 32:10
Researcher: Linus Plata
______________________________________________________________
830
831

Researcher: So magandang hapon po Sir Zaldy and Ma'am Leah. Maraming salamat po sa
pagpapaunlak sa interview na ito. So Sir Zaldy , kamusta na kayo ngayon?

832
833

Interviewee: Ok lang po. Ah, medyo mahirap, pero kailangan talaga pagtitiis e.

834

R:

Oho.

835

I:

Though kailangan talaga sakripisyo rin dito e.

836

R:

Oho. Ano pong, sabi niyo po mahirap? Anong mahirap? Paano pong mahirap?

837

I:

Ah, una syempre dun sa kaso natin, na ipinataw sa amin, ano e, wala namang

838

katotohanan. Pangalawa, malayo kami sa pamilya namin e. Isa yun sa

839

nagpapa-ano sa amin, nagpapa-down sa kalooban namin, yaong paglayo

840

namin sa aming pamilya. Sabi nga yung pagsisi--pagpapataw sa amin ng

841

parusa na 'di naman namin ginagawa, isa na sa mahirap talaga yun dito. Isa

842

mahirap sa pagkakakulong namin yung ganung pagbibintang sa amin na wala

843

namang katotohanan.

844

R:

Sige po, pagusapan natin mamaya yung sa pagbibintang no? Balikan po natin

845

yung issue dun sa creek. Dun po sa ilog na nangyari, so, kwentuhan niyo nga

846

po kami dun sa insidenteng yun at ah kwento rin po niyo sa amin yung naging

847

partisipasyon niyo dun sa creek dun sa Sitio Basi.

848

I:

Yung sa creek kasing yun nung time na... Kaya tinutulan namin yun kasi nung

849

time na, diba bawal naman cover-an yun lalo na kapag pagmamay-ari ng

850

gobyerno? Kasi unang nagiging dahilan dun yung pagbaha e. Ah ginawa nila

851

nun, kasi sa lugar namin pinaalis kami dun e. Nagagawa na sila dun,

852

nagagawa na. Tumututol kaming mga taga-dun kasi ang magiging cost nga

853

nun, ano, yung pagbaha, pero tinutuloy pa rin nila. Hanggang sa, kami ngang

854

dalawa ni Katimbang yung naatasan nga dun. Si Katimbang kasi ano siya sa

855
856

amin e,
-more152

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...222

857

parang presidente ng Home Owners namin e tapos ako naman ang Sergeant

858

of Arms. Kami naglalakad ng papel nun para nga mapigilan nga yung

859

pagagawa ng, pagko-cover ng creek. Hanggang sa yun nga. Napag-initan kami

860

na, nangyari niyan ano e, kaya na ano e, ako napagkabit din ni Katimbang ng

861

tarpaulin e, kaya isa na rin ako sa napag-initan dun e. Yun lang,

862

R:

So bukod po dun sa pagkakabit ng tarpaulin, ano pa po yung iba niyong mga

863

ginawa para... Meron pa po ba kayong ibang ginawa para i--, iparating ang

864

inyong protestadoon sa creek?

865

I:

Meron. Unang-una nga, yun nga, dinala nga namin yun sa ano yun sa DENR ni

866

ah... Tapos nagpadala nga ng notice yung DENR hanggang sa 'di rin naman

867

na ano, naresultahan yun e, 'di rin napatigil yun e. Hanggang sa matapos din

868

nila yun e. Yun, yung time nga na yon, nagpagawa nga ng tarpaulin tapos e

869

kailangan syempre iaano sa ano yan e, sa mas nakakakita, marami dapat

870

makakakita nun e. Yun, inilagay ko yun sa may mangga e, sa may lugar namin

871

para mabasa ng lahat. E ako'y nakitang naglagay nun. Yun. Ipinatanggal yun

872

tapos nalaman na ako nga yung naglalagay. Isa na sa dahilan yun e kaya

873

nadiretso rin ako dito, tapos yun. Isa na yun sa dahilan kaya siguro na-ano

874

ako dito, sa loob. Yung pag-aano namin na yun ng, paglalagay ko ng tarpaulin

875

na yun.

876

R:

ilog?

877
878

Oho. Sir Zaldy , ano pong nag-udyok sa inyo na tumutol sa pagtatakip ng

I:

Nag-udyok? Kasi nakikita namin nun e, kapag naulan nga kasi magiging cause

879

nga nun kasi, kami maapektuhan kasi liliit nga yung creek e. Sa'min babalik,

880

magfi-feedback yung tubig nun kaya kami yung maapektuhan. Kaya nga

881

tinutulan talaga namin yun. Isa na rin dun yung ano e, isa na rin yun yung

882

pag-papaalis sa atin, ano? Kaya talagang tumutol kami sa pag-aano nun,

883

paglalagay nung anong yun. Yungsa creek na yun.

-more153

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...333

884

R:

Ano pong ibig sabihin ng pagpapaalis sa inyo?

885

I:

Ano bang ano natin dun?

886

I2:

Yung irerelocate naman kami e.

887

R:

Opo.

888

I2:

Irerelocate kami dun sa may [Cala].

889

R:

Oho.

890

I2:

Tapos nga po ang inano namin ay sobrang tagal na namin dun sa lugar.
Almost 30 years na kami.

891
892

R:

Ok ho.

893

I2:

So wala, wala na po silang na-ano ng malaman nilang matagal na kami sa

894

lugar na 'yon. Tapos itong nahuli na sila, natahimik na yung lugar namin.

895

Wala na iyong nagpapalipat, wala na yung nag-aano sa amin na ilili--

896

ire-relocate kami kasi sila'y nandito na sa loob. Ayun, yun lang ang dahilan

897

kasi sila-- Yun lang ang dahilan na sila'y inano kasi kami nga ay pinapaalis

898

sa lugar namin.

899

R:

Oho.

900

I2:

So ang kabilang side ay 'di po kasali. Yung side lang namin ang talagang
pwedeng paalisin, pweding i-relocate.

901
902

R:

Oho.

903

I2:

Kaya hindi, iba-- Lahat sa amin hindi pumapayag kasi malayo sa palengke, sa

904

school. E syempre kaming mahirap lang, pamasahe na lang sa mga bata,

905

pang-ano sa palengke, mamasahe pa ulit. E sobrang layo dun sa may [Cala], sa

906

mayMaa-, sa may sabungan. Kaya 'di kami pumayag. Yun ang pinaglaban

907

namin salugar namin. So hindi lang kami, lahat ng aming mga kapitbahay ay

908

'di sumangayon sa gusto nila na kami ay ire-relocate.

909

R:

Oho.

-more-

154

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...444

910

I2:

So yun po ang aming dahilan na ganun.

911

R:

Ano pong dahilan dun sa connection nun sa creek, meron po bang connection

912

yun? Yung pag-sabi sa inyo na mag-relocate at yung pagtatakip ng ilog? May

913

connection po ba?

914

I2:

namin ay TESDA Chrysalis Academy na po. Yung likod namin bakod na po ng

915
916

Pagagandahin daw po nila yung sa may lugar namin. Kasi po yung katapat

Chrysalis .

Yung harapan namin, bakanteng lote din, TESDA College. Gusto po nila

917

siguro ay pagpasok ng estudyante ay mawala yung mga squatter kasi pangit

918

kami sa paningin nila.

919

R:

Oho.

920

I2:

Ayun kanilang inaano sa amin, na kami'y mawala doon.

921

R:

Sino po yung may-ari ng lupa na kinatitirikan niyo?

922

I2:

Ah, kung sa ano po, government po, government po yun kasi sa tabi na po
siya ng creek.

923
924

R:

Oho.

925

I2:

So yun. Pero yung kalsada po hanggang sa ano, yun may may-ari pa po. May
may-ari po yung kalsada. Yung daanan ng sasakyan.

926
927

R:

Private owned po?

928

I2:

Private owned.

929

R:

Ok po. Sir kwento niyo naman yung pagkakakulong niyo dito. Nagumpisa po
'to nung January 4, 2011, tama po ba? Opo.

930
931

I:

Ano yan e...

932

R:

At ano pong connection doon sa issue sa creek.

933

I:

Ah, ang pangyayari kasi n'an, kami ni Katimbang ang

934

pinakaporsigidongtalaga na tumututol diyan e. Kami talaga yung masigasig na gumagawa

935

ng, lumalakad

936

pagawa]

937

R:

ng tarpaulintsaka lumalakad ng papel sa DENR para [matigil na ang

[Bakit po?]

-more155

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...555

938

I:

Kasi una nga, para nga matigi-- mapigilan na yung pagagawang creek e.

939

Yung construction dun e. Pero wala, tinutuloy, tinuloy pa rin nila yun, Tapos

940

ang pangyayari nga niyan nung January 4...

941

I2:

January 3.

942

I:

January 3? January 4.

943

I2:

Hindi. Napatawag yan ng... January 3 po nagpatawag po ng meeting yung

944

gwardya na para sa aming lahat. Pinatawag si Lilia Katimbang na mag, siya ay

945

kakausapin sa loob. Ayaw...

946

R:

Sa loob po ng?

947

I2:

Ng Chrysalis Academy. Ayaw pumayag ni Lilia Katimbang, ang gusto ni Lilia

948

Katimbang

lahat kami ay kakausapin. Ay kung ano naman, ay yung kumbaga sila lang
talagaang dapat kausapin dahil sila lang yung natumbukan ng Chrysalis , na

949
950

sila

lang po yung naaapektuhan kung talagang gagamitin yung bahay nila, sa

951

kanilalang, sila lang ang naapektuhan. E ang gusto po niya kaming lahat na

952

magka-kapitbahay ay kakausapin so wala pong um-attend sa'min kahit isa

953

kasi itong si Katimbang ay gusto po niya sa Barangay daw po mag-uusap.

954

Ayaw

po nila, ayaw po niyang pumayag na sa loob kami ng Chrysalis , ayaw

955

pumayag

niya na sa Chrysalis kamilahat mag-usap, gusto niya sa Barangay.

956

R:

Bakit daw po?

957

I2:

Hindi ko po ano kung ano, tapos po yun po. E wala ngang um-attend nung

958

January 3, nung pinatawag na meeting, so kinaumagahan ng January 4, mga

959

around 7 po...

960

I:

7 ng gabi.

961

I2:

Oo, 7 ng gabi, siya na po yung may mga dumating na mga pulis . Naka-civilian
lang po sila, ay ako nga po [yung nakausap]

962
963

I:

[Galing sa Chrysalis .]

964

I2:

Oo. Ako nga po yung nakausap ng mga pulis, nagtanong ako sa kanila kung

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe..666

965

sino pong hinahanap nila. Kasi po nasa harapan po namin sila, tapos yung

966

iba na'ndun kela Katimbang. So hindi po nila kilala si Zaldy , hindi nila alam

967

kung saan yung bahay ni Zaldy , kaya kumbaga syempre pulis, ako yung

968

nag-ano sa kanila na "Sir, sino po yung hinahanap niyo?" sabi "Wala,

969

magsipasok na kayo sa bahay niyo." Ayun po.

970

I:

Tapos yung pangyayaring ngang nung ano, ah namamahinga ako nun e, sa

971

bahay e. Ako, kasama ko nga 'tong asawa ko, nanay kotsaka isang kapitbahay

972

ko. Kagagaling ko lang sa biyahe nun. Napapansin nga namin na may ano,

973

pabalik-balik na motor, may hinahanap. Sabi ng nanay ko sinupin ko daw

974

yung anak ko. Sinupin, ibig sabihin hanapin ko daw yung anak ko nun, kasi

975

marami ng tao sa labas e, naglabasan na mga kapitbahay, kasi may mga

976

dalang ngang mga baril e. 'Kala mo kung sino talaga ang aanuhin e. Hawak

977

ko yung anak ko, nasa harapan lang kami ng tindahan ng ninong ko. Malapit

978

lang sa bahay namin, malapit na malapit lang. Hawak ko yung anak ko.

979

Lumampas lang sa'kin yung mga pulis, lumampas sila. May pinuntahan sa

980

kabilang dulo. Tapos sabi ko sa ninong ko nun, sabi ko "Nong, tignan niyo

981

yung mga pulis na yun. Ba't ano, ba't ganyan ang ano nila, tapos naka-ano

982

pa sila ng baril?" Tapos sabi nga niya e hindi niya alam. 'Pag tapat sa akin,

983

napagtanungan na nga ako, sabi sa'kin "Saan ang bahay ni Placido

984

Katimbang?" Sabi ko "Dun po sa dulo." "Ikaw ba si Zaldy Fe?" Sabi ko "Opo,

985

bakit po?" Aba'y pinosasan na ko. Hawak ko pa anak ko. Sabi ko "Saglit lang,

986

teka ho, hawak ko pa anak ko." Sabi ko "Bakit? Anong kasalanan ko?" Sabi

987

"Wala. Sumama ka lang." Yun ganun ang inaano nila sa akin. Yun ang:::, tapos

988

pagdating nga dito... Una ano e, mga, naisakay na kagad ako ng sasakyan

989

habang pinuntahan pa si Katimbang dun sa bahay nila e. Antagal pa bago,

990

bago maisakay si Katimbang dito sa, makasama ko, makasama namin siya sa

991

sasakyan. Siguro mga 30 minutes pa. 'Tas pinasok pa ko sa loob ng Chrysalis

992

para 'di nga

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe...777

993

ko masundan ng mga ninong ko, ng mga, yan ng mga asawa ko, nanay ko, kasi

994

hinahabol na ko, bakit kung anong kasalanan ko e. Bakit nga ko hinuhuli e.

995

Pinosasan na kagad ako e. 'Di sila nagsasalita. Mga pulis walang sinasabi.

996

Kaya pagdating namin dito, yun sinampahan na kami kagad ng kaso na kaso

997

na ano...

998

I2:

5-11

999

I:

5-11. Yung kasong yun ay 'di naman namin ginagawa yung ganun. Ta's yung
kasong yun ay 'di rin biro.

1000
1001

R:

At yun po ay?

1002

I:

Yung kasong yun e pagtutulak tapos nahulihan daw kami ng droga. Hanggang

1003

sa ngayon ay pinagdudusahan namin. Masakit, masakit na ano talaga. Wala

1004

kaming nagawa kasi wala naman kaming alam sa batas. Tapos yung mga

1005

proseso nila ng panghuhuli 'di naman tamasa batas. Kaya sinasabi namin,

1006

sinasabi nila na mga nakuha sa aming droga, sila naman, sa kanila galing, sila

1007

naglagay.

1008

R:

sa creek? Sa pagpoprotesta niyo?

1009
1010

Ano pong kinalaman nito dun sa... May kinalaman po ba ito dun sa issue dun

I:

Isa na yun. Siguro isa na sa dahilan yun para, para wala ng kumontra dun.

1011

Kasi kami nga yung unang-unang masigasig na nagaa-- lumalaban dun sa

1012

lugar namin. Hanggang sa ngayon. Simula nung nahuli kami, wala na e, na,

1013

ang namuo sa kanila ay takot e, sa mga kapitbahay namin. Namuo na takot

1014

hanggang sa yun, natahimik na rin yun. Natigil na rin yung pagagawa ng creek

1015

na yun sa pagkahuli namin.

1016

R:

Oho. Naisip niyo ho ba Sir Zaldy na may consequence o may kahihinatnan

1017

kapag, you know, pinatuloy niyo yung paglaban yung pagtutol niyo, meron

1018

na, inasahan niyo ba namay bungang 'di niyo gusto, katulad nga ng pagkulong

1019

nga sa inyo?
-more-

158

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...888

1020

I:

Hindi ko naisip yun.Sabi ko nga bakit ganito? Para naman sa amin itong

1021

pinaglalaban namin e. Ang::, kasi nung time na yun, nung oras na yun

1022

kalmado lang ako, wala, wala sa akin yung ano, wala man lang akong kakaba-

1023

kaba na may mangyayari sa akin. Basta yung pagtutol naming yun, wala, wala

1024

kaming nararamdaman na mangyayari sa amin na pagkakakulong. Wala.

1025

Wala. Kahit si Katimbang, wala ring nararamdaman. Biglaan lang talaga.

1026

R:

Pinagsisisihan niyo po ba ang pagtututol?

1027

I:

Nung una pinagsisisihan namin, kasi 'di ko, kung alam ko lang ganitong

1028

mangyayari dapat 'di na ko tumutol diba? Pero inisip ko rin na kung 'di kami

1029

tumutol dun, isa na sa magiging dahilan ay yung ano nga e, una nga e yung

1030

pagbaha e. Kung 'di namin tinutulan yun, dirediretso yun, malalagas kami sa

1031

lugar na yun e. Kasi ang tagal na nga namin dun, papaalisin kami. 30 years na,

1032

dun na kami, dun na ko nag-asawa, nagka-asawa, dun na ko lumaki. Yun lang.

1033

R:

Ilang taon na ho ba kayo ngayon?

1034

I:

31.

1035

R:

At kayo po Tita?

1036

I2:

32. [33.]

1037

R:

[32.] 33. 31 at 33? OK. Oho. Naniniwala po ba kayo na sa issueng ito doon
sa creek ay merong opresyon, pangaagrabyadong nagaganap?

1038
1039

I:

Meron. Meron talagang opresyon? Ano?

1040

I2:

Wala kaming dahilan ba't sila makulong ng ganitongkatagal kung sa ibang

1041

bagay e. Kasi doon lang po nagmula sa issue dun sa lugar namin. Kaya yung

1042

ipinaratang nila na nagbebentahan, nagabutan ng gabing iyon ng shabu ay

1043

walang katotohanan yun. Dahil hawak nito ang aking maliit, at ako nama'y,

1044

siya'y nasa harapan ng tindahan. Maraming nakakita na basta-basta na lang

1045

nila dinampot at ang tukoy talaga nila ay si Placido Katimbang so ngayon po

1046

siya pa yung napagtanungan nga ganun. Nung tinanong siya, yun, sinama na

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe...999

po siya sa kaso, sa, kay Katimbang. [Kaya siya yung unang dinampot.]

1047
1048

I:

[Kasi nakikita na lagi niya kong kasama.]

1049

Nakikita na lagi akong kasama kasi may tricycle ako e, nagta-tricycle ako. Ang

1050

nangyayari diyan, kapag may lakad kami ni Katimbang, aayusin namin yung

1051

papel,

ako yung inaarkila niya. Kaya lagi nila akong nakikita. Tapos, saka yung

1052

binibintang nila sa aking pagtutulak, 'di ko magagawa yan. Una, alam ko, ano

1053

yan e, laban sa batas yan e. Pangalawa, kuntento na kami sa kinikita ng maliit

1054

naming tindahan, tapos tricycle ko, may kapatid pa kong dalawa sa ibang

1055

bansa. 'Di ko na, saka 'di ko kayang maatim na 'yong ipapakain ko sa pamilya

1056

ko manggagaling sa ganun. 'Di ko kaya. Saka pinalaki ako ng nanay ko na una

1057

may takot ako, may takot sa Diyos.Kaya 'di ko kayang, 'di ko kayang gawin

1058

yung binibintang nila sa akin.

1059

R:

po ba yun?

1060
1061

Oho. Nabalitaan ko na nakakapagbasa kayo ng Bibliya sa loob ng selda. Totoo

I:

Ah oo nga. Oo. Una, ayun nagpapasalamat ako. Siguro itong pangyayaring ito,

1062

parang ano rin sa'kin e, isang aral na rin e. Una, dito ko na nga nakilala ang

1063

Panginoon. Kasi sa laya, marami diyan sa amin na ano e. Yung mangangaral,

1064

tatakbuhan lang namin. Dito hindi mo na matatakasan yung mga

1065

mangangaral e. Last year nga, dito ko na naunawaan kung gaano kahalaga

1066

nga yung buhay tapos dito ko rin nalaman kung, yung mga pagkakamali ko na

1067

nagawa ko sa laya, dito ko napagbulay-bulayansa loob. Kaya siguro isang

1068

daan na rin 'to ng Panginoon sa akin para sa paglaya ko, kung loloobin niya

1069

ano? Yung mga natutunan ko dito, yung mga Salita na, Salita Niya na

1070

natutunan ko ay ibabahagi ko rin sa laya e. Ibabahagi ko sa pamilya ko,

1071

maging saano, sa taong makakahalubilo ko. Dito, dito nga yun ay, nagve-

1072

verse nga ko sa kanila, nagbabahagi nga ko ng Salita ng Diyos sa kanila. Ewan

1073

ko dito, yung pagdating ko kasi, unang-una talaga, ano e, Diyos kagad yung

-more160

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...999

1074

ano e, yung hinanap ko e. Tinanong ko talaga siya. Diyos kagad yung-- Unang

1075

una ko kasing dating dito parang napagtakpan ako ng langit at lupa. Parang

1076

gumuho yung pangarap ko lahat e.

1077

R:

Oho.

1078

I:

Pero, ano e, hindi dun matatapos e. Yun. Humingi ako sa Panginoon ng gabay

1079

nun, di naman niya ako pinabayaan. Hanggang sa ngayon, yun, nagiging

1080

matatag ako. Lalo na yung pamilya ko, hindi nga sila nawawalan din ngayon.

1081

Totoo na wala kang ibang kakampi dito kundi Panginoon lang talaga.

1082

R:

Oho. Maganda yan Tito. Ako rin ay mananampalataya. OK, sige mabalik tayo

1083

dun sa, sabi niyo kanina may pangaagrabyadong naganap. Maari niyo bang

1084

ilarawan sa amin yung pangaagrabyado na nagaganap dun sa issue dun sa

1085

creek.

1086

I:

Naagrabyado. Kasi una nga, tumutol lang kami dun, ba't idinaan pa nila sa

1087

gan'to diba? Minasama nila yung pagtutol namin e. 'Di ko naman alam na, na

1088

dun sa pagtutol namin e ganitong nga naman ang kahihinatnan namin ni

1089

Katimbang, pagkakakulong. Sana kung, kung alam ko lang na ganun yung

1090

kahihinatnan, 'di na ko tumutol dun, diba? Pero parang una yung panghuhuli

1091

nga nila, salang-sala sa batas, wala sa pros-- tamang proseso. Tapos 'to nga,

1092

pangalawa, pinagsisisihan nga namin dito yung mga kasalanan naman namin

1093

na hindi naman namin talaga ginawa. Una, ang hirap kasi, ang hirap talaga ng

1094

buhay kulungan e. Napakahirap ng buhay kulungan. 'Tamo laki nga, ang laki

1095

nga ng ipinayat ko dito e. Ang laki ko dito e.

1096

R:

Mahalaga po ba ang--Kapag ba meron tayong nakiktang mali, mahalaga po ba

1097

na hinaha-- ipinaparating natin o kino-communicate natin yung ating

1098

pagtutol?

1099
1100

I:

Oo, mahalaga yun. Kasi una pa, pa'no malalaman yung ano, yung tumututol ka
diba, kung 'di nila malalaman? Ano, ano pa ulit?

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe...111111

1101

R:

ay importante? Kung opo, bakit? Kung hindi po, bakit hindi?

1102
1103

Ayun po, pagpaparating, pagpoprotesta. Yun po ba ay mahalaga? Yun po ba

I:

Oo mahalaga yun kasi unang una, para malaman nga rin yung hinaing mo e,

1104

diba? Para malaman din nila yung mga hinaing namin, ano? Ah yung protesta,

1105

mahalaga yun e. Tapos, yun lang.

1106

R:

Sige po ha, dun sa issue ng creek, meron, so sinabi niyo kanina na may

1107

pangaagrabyadong nagaganap. Sino po yung nangaagrabyado at sino po sa

1108

tinginniyo yung naaagrabyado?

1109

I:

Una, alam naman natin kung sino kasi may-ari nun diba? Una yung mayor nga

1110

natin dito na nakapwesto nga. Syempre, kami yung naagrabyado, yung mga,

1111

mga nakatira dun sa lugar na yun. Pero sa ngayon, OK na e. Ngayon na lang

1112

kami naagrabyado ni Katimbang e. Syempre nakakulong kami e. Yun na lang

1113

e.

1114

R:

Ngayon Tito, gaano na nga, gaano naaapektuhan ang inyong pamilya dito sa
pangyayaring ito?

1115
1116

I:

Malaki, kasi lumalaki yung anak ko, 'di ko nakikita.

1117

R:

Ilan po ba ang anak nila?

1118

I:

Dalawa. Tapos yung anak kong maliit, si Nia, may diperensya pa yun sa,

1119

babae yung anak kong isang maliit e, may diperensya pa yun sa ano yun e, sa

1120

puwet, maliit ang isang puwet nun e.

1121

I2:

'Di pantay ang paglalakad.

1122

I:

'Di pantay ang paglalakad. [Tiyaga-tiyaga sila.]

1123

1124

I:

Ano, 3.

1125

R:

Yung isa ho ay?

1126

I:

Ah, 9. Tiyaga-tiyaga silang pumunta dito.

1127

R:

Wow. So dumadalaw po sila dito?

1128

I:

Oo dumadalaw po.

[Ilang taon na ho siya?]

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe...121212

1129

R:

Sila po ay elementary?

1130

I2:

[Yung isa ay Grade 3.]

1131

I:

[Yung panaganay ko.]

1132

R:

Yung isa po ay Grade 3.

1133

I2:

Yung isa, tatlong taon pa lang ho.

1134

R:

Ay oo nga, yung nine years old po ay Grade 3, saan po?

1135

I2:

Sa Lopez.

1136

R:

Sa Lopez. Oho. Doon ho ako nagtapos.

1137

I:

Ay sa Lopez?

1138

R:

Oho.

1139

I:

Una ano e, yung, masakit sa pamilya, una malayo ka nga sa kanila tapos 'di mo

1140

alam kung ano ng nangyayari sa kanila, kung OK ba sila, kung saan ba sila

1141

kumukuha ng mga pangkain, mga ginagastos nila, kasi malaki yung papel ko

1142

sa'min e. Una, ako ang padre de pamilya sa amin e, kasi wala na ang tatay ko,

1143

patay na ang tatay ko. Ako na lang ang tumatayo sa'ming padre de pamilya.

1144

Tapos yung nanay ko, may nararamdaman, may nararamdaman pang sakit.

1145

Ngayon nga nasa PGH siya, kinukuha yung medical ano niya, medical result

1146

niya. Tapos, yun nga, yung anak ko, lumalaki na wala sa piling ko. Ta's may

1147

mga bagay sila na hindi nila sinasabi sa akin e. Syempre, una problema nila sa

1148

bahay, 'di na nila pinararating sa aming mga nakakulong. Kasi una magiging

1149

dagdagin pa yun sa aming isipin yun e. Isa pa sa magpapabigat sa aming

1150

isipin yung mga yun.

1151

R:

Oho.

1152

I:

Tapos, ano pa ba yung nagpapahirap? Yun nga yung sa damdamin din, yung

1153

pag-iisip. Isa na yan, sa pag-iisip. Yan, ang laki na din ng ipinamayat ko diyan

1154

sa pag-iisip na yan. Dito sa loob kasi 'di ka masyado makakatulog dito e.

1155

Mahirap ding, mahirap ding makatulog dito lalo't 'di ka sanay. Mamamahay

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe...131313

ka dito sa loob ng bilanggo e.

1156
1157

R:

Yung trabaho po ba?

1158

I:

Trabaho dito?

1159

R:

Syempre kayo po ay nandito, hindi na po kayo nakakapag-tricycle so paano

po naapektuhan yung income ng pamilya?

1160
1161

I:

Yun, maraming nawala e. Una wala ng nagbibigay sa anak ko ng pang-gastos

1162

niya e, pambaon-baon sa, ta's yung mga-- kasi ang partisipasyon ko sa bahay

1163

ay sagot ko yung tubig e. Ta's pagkain. Yun nawala lahat e. Si ang nagsasabat

1164

na nun nanay ko e. Dun na kinukuha lahat sa tindahan. Tapos yung tricycle ko

1165

yun nga, yung kapatid ko nagdadala ngayon, 'di ko na rin ano kung OK ba.

1166

Kung maayos pa ba tricycle ko, kasi maingat ako sa gamit e. Malaki yung ano,

1167

malaki yung nawala talaga, malaki.

1168

R:

So balik po tayo dun sa yung mga nangaagrabyado at mga naagrabyado, so

1169

kayo pong sinasabi niyong naaagrabyado, pinarating niyo yung inyong

1170

pagtutol dun sa pagtakip dun sa ilog, halimbawa. Ano po yung tugon ng mga

1171

sinasabi niyong nangaagrabyado, sila po ba ay nakinig? Ano pong ginawa

1172

nilang aksyon kung meron man po?

1173

I:

'Di nga sila umaksyon e. Tuloy pa rin yung pagagawa nila nun e. Ayon

1174

umaksyon sila, yung pinahuli kami. Ayun na ang aksyon nila. Yung pagtutol

1175

namin, inagrabyado na nga kami ano? Ang naging aksyon nila, yung

1176

pagpapahuli sa amin. Yun na.

1177

R:

Ilarawan niyo nga Tito ang La Merced noon at ngayon. Meron po bang

1178

pagbabago? Bigyang diin natin yung politika. At kung kaya natin Tito, pwede

1179

ba nating i-connect yun sa ano, dito sa issue dun sa creek?

1180

I:

Kasi noon, ano e, noon pa naman, ng time pa naman ni Salvi, ni Mayor Salvi

1181

nun, pinapaalis na rin kami dun. May nagpapaalis sa amin dun na yung may-

1182

ari ng private road. Ah pinaglalaban namin yun dun sa Barangay, sa

-more-

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Full Interview with Mr. Fe...141414

1183

Baranggay. Mga:: buhay na ata ito, mga ninetee--, ano ba si Mayor nun, basta

1184

time ni Mayor Salvi yun. Si Mayor Salvi pa ang nagsabi diyan e, sa'min

1185

na "Huwag kayo aalis. Kasi yung lugar niyo private-- e ano yan pag-aari ng

1186

gobyerno." E ayun nga...

1187

R:

Sabi niyo po kanina private so ano po ba?

1188

I:

Hindi, private road yung lugar.

1189

R:

Private, yung road po ay private. Opo. Pero yung tinitirikan ng bahay niyo ay
government owned?

1190
1191

I:

Oo. Yun nga. Mismong si Mayor Salvi na ang nagsabing "Huwag kayong aalis

1192

diyan." E ngayon, ngayon na naman, issue na naman yan, yung pagpapaalis

1193

nga doon. Sa time nga na'to ni Mayor Lance yun naumpisahan na naman yung

1194

pagpapaalis dun. Kaya naging, isang pressure na naman sa amin e. Isa na

1195

naman sa naging isipin dun sa lugar namin e. Kaya 'di rin kami masyado

1196

magkatulog e, kasi una nga,'pag napalipat kami maraming mawawala e.

1197

Maraming-- Una dun kasi yung business namin e. May tindahan nga e. Ta's

1198

una malapit sa lahat, palengke, simbahan, eskwelahan. E 'pag pinaalis kami,

1199

sa'n, sa'n kami ilalagay? Dun sa lugar na malayo sa lahat.

1200

R:

Oho. Anong sinasabi ng anak niyo tungkol dito?

1201

I:

Pangyayari sa'kin?

1202

R:

Oho.

1203

I:

Pinapaliwanag naman ng asawa ko e. Ah yung anak ko ngang babae

1204

nakakaintindi na e, kasi ah e, medyo matino yung anak kong bata e, yung

1205

anak kong babae. Tinatanong nga niya "Pa, kailan ka ba lalaya?" Sinasabi ko

1206

na lang sa kanila na ano e, magdasal na lang sila. Anak kong lalaki,

1207

nauunawaan naman niya yun. Wala silang ano, wala silang tinatanong na ano

1208

naman, na tungkol sa akin e, ano Ma? So pinapaliwanag yun ng asawa ko.

1209

Sinasabi ko na lang na lagi na lang sila magdasal.

-more165

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...151515

1210

R:

Ano pong ang inaasahan niyo sa hinaharap?

1211

I:

Ah unang-una ano e hinihiling ko talaga sa Panginoon na ano e, na makalaya

1212

na kami. Kasi para, kung ano man yung pagkukulang namin sa pamilya

1213

namin, mapunuan na namin. Tapos, makalaya na kami dahil habang

1214

tumatagal na kasi mahirap e. Nahihirapan na rin kaming mangulong. Ah,

1215

malungkot kasi dito e. Yun lang, para makapag-bagong buhay na. Yung

1216

malimutan na'tong bangungot na 'to. Yun lang. Yan lang ang gusto ko e. Yun

1217

lang ang pangarap ko talaga. Hinihiling-hiling sa Panginoon na makalaya na

1218

kami. Sana mabigyan naman ng, sana yung kaso namin mag-ano na e, yung

1219

dire-diretso ba ang hearing, kasi una, marami laging reset.

1220

R:

Oho.

1221

I:

Sir, magandang hapon po.

1222

R:

Ay Good afternoon Sir. OK na po yung letter Sir.

1223

I:

Yun lang po.

1224

R:

Ah, dito po sa bayan natin, meron po bang kailangan baguhin? Sa lipunan

natin?

1225
1226

I:

Baguhin?

1227

R:

Sa La Merced.

1228

I:

Kasi nakakulong kami ngayon e. Wala. Ma, ano pa yung dapat baguhin?

1229

R:

Kung meron po. Kung wala naman e. Sistema. May mga sistemang kailangan
bang baguhin?

1230
1231

I:

Una, sistema ng panghuhuli ng mga pulis, no? Kung mang-aano sana sila ng

1232

mga manghuhuli na ah, manghuhuli sila tulad nga sa, sa nasabi nilang

1233

nagtutulak ng droga, sana yung huhulihin nila yung talagang may ano sila,

1234

may sapat na ebidensya, kasi maraming manghuhuli diyan na ano e, na ano e,

1235

na una wala ngang ebidensya, tapos 'di naman sapat ang ebidensya. Ang

1236

hirap kasi mangulong e.Yun lang.

-more166

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...161616

1237

R:

kulungan? Ano pong mga natutunan ninyo?

1238
1239

Ano pong natutunan ninyo sa prose-- sa karanasang ito, dito sa loob ng

I:

Unang una yun nga, dito sa loob, no? Ang natutunan ko dito ay yung ugali mo

1240

sa laya, 'di mo na pwedeng dalin dito sa loob e. Kung dati sa laya, tamad ka,

1241

wala kang galang sa magulang, bugnutin; dito sa loob hindi na e. Dito

1242

babaguhin ka talaga ng mga kasama mo e, mga nakasama mo, babaguhin ka

1243

dito. Marami, marami akong natutunan dito. Una nga, yun nga, nagkaraoon na

1244

ako ng takot sa Diyos. Natuto na akong tumawag sa kanya. Tapos lahat ng

1245

bagay, siguro kapag lumaya na ako pahahalagahan ko na. Unang una yung

1246

pamilya ko. Yun lang.

1247

R:

Meron ho ba kayong mga gustong idagdag, sabihin, mensahe?

1248

I:

Dito nga, unang-una, papasalamat nga ako sa ano, sa mga BGNP personel, kay

1249

Warden, dahil sa ano e, maganda naman yung mga trato nila sa amin e. Lahat

1250

sila OK naman . Pantay-pantay naman yung pagtingin nila sa amin. Sa, sa ano

1251

nila, wala kaming masasabi. Tapos yun nga, gusto ko na ring ano, sana

1252

magkaroon na rin ng resulta itong kaso namin. Sana ipagkaloob na nga ng

1253

Panginoon yung kalayaan namin no? Bawat isa dito sa amin dito. Dito kasi

1254

halos lahat ng nakakulong, gusto na makalaya e. Kasi sobrang hirap nga,

1255

malayo sa pamilya e. Tapos dinadalangin ko na rin sa Panginoon na ano,

1256

nagpapasalamat na rin ako sa Kanya na habang nandito nga kami, hindi

1257

nawawalan yung pamilyanamin, hindi Niya pinababayaan. Kasi totoo na, na,

1258

isang patotoo ko rin e. Kasi bawat dalangin ko, 'di naman Niya agad agarang

1259

tinutugon pero nararamdaman ko yung ano e, yung sagot niya sa akin e.

1260

Marami. Tapos, mismong yung mga taong ginagamit niya, upang tumulong

1261

nga sa amin, yung pagkakaloob nga sa amin ng, ah private na attorney. Yun.

1262

Yun lang. Yung mga taong nakapaligid sa'min na patuloy na dumadalangin sa

1263

amin, noh? Yun lang.

-more167

Full Interview with Mr. Fe...171717

1264

R:

OK. Maraming salamat Sir Zaldy Fe.

1265

I:

Maraming salamat po.

1266

R:

Maraming salamat po Tita, Tita Samantha Fe.

-end1267
1268
1269
1270
1271
1272
1273
1274
1275
1276
1277
1278
1279
1280

168

Interview with Mrs. Lilia C. Katimbang

1:25 pm,February 3, 2012
Duration: 1:26:20
Researcher: Linus Plata
______________________________________________________________
1281

Researcher: So, magandang hapon po Tita Lilia.

1282

Interviewee:Magandang hapon din.

1283

R:

Thank you Tita ha. Napaunlakan niyo ang aking interview sa inyo para sa

1284

aking thesis. So Tita ah, relax relax lang naman tayo dito Tita, parang

1285

nagkekwentuhan. So Tita, kamusta na kayo ngayon?

1286

I:

Eto, sa loob ng isang taon at ah isang buwan, bukas isang buwan, isang taon

1287

at isang buwan na uli' sila na nakakulong; ah patuloy pa rin nakikipaglaban sa

1288

katarungan at naghahangad kami na magkaroon ng katarungan yung

1289

pagkakakulong sa kanila at tsaka lumabas ang katotohanan talaga at

1290

mapawalang sala at mapatunayan namin na iyong isinampa nilang kaso dun

1291

sa dalawa ay talagang walang katotohanan.

1292

R:

Oho.

1293

I:

Yun ang aming hinihiling ngayon talaga.

1294

R:

Oho.

1295

I:

Kasi wala naman kaming ibang hihilingin kundi linisin yung kanilang kasong

1296

isinampa na napakadumi at napaka... Kumbaga ay heinous crime yung

1297

kanilang isinampang kaso at walang, walang halagang pera para ikaw ay

1298

makalaya kaya hindi biro-biro yung kanilang sinampang kaso. Napakabigat at

1299

tsaka araw-araw na pahirap sa kabuhayan, pahirap sa kalooban. Yun ang 'di

1300

kayang ano e, mabayaran, yun ang di namin kayang, tsk, malampasan ng

1301

ganun, ganun-ganun na lang.

1302

R:

Oo Tita, nabanggit niyo Tita yung pang-araw-araw ano? Yun nga Tita sa

1303

pang-araw-araw niyong pamumuhay, kamusta kayo ngayon? Kayo ba ay may

1304

kasama? Kayo ba ay mag-isa? Kamusta ang hanapbuhay? Yun. Paano tayo

-more169

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...222

nakakaraos Tita?

1305
1306

I:

Ah sa ngayon kasama ko ang nanay ko na isa rin namang may sakit, ako lang

1307

ang nag-aaruga kasi yung mga kapatid kong iba puro may mga anak, may

1308

pamilya. Ayaw naman nilang--, ayaw ng nanay kong tumira doon at

1309

maraming-- naguguluhan, maraming mga bata. Ayaw niya ng maingay. Sa

1310

pang-araw-araw naman ngayon, sa awa ng Diyos, ah na natulungan kami ng

1311

Kasangga na...

1312

R:

Kasangga?

1313

I:

Oo, na kahit papaano mabigyan kami ng financial assitance, kasi ng

1314

nagkasakit si Nanay, ah sinagot nila ang gamot, pati ang kaunting medical

1315

assistance na nakatulong din naman sa akin para kahit papaano magkaroon

1316

ng konting puhunan, para mapaikot ko at magkaroon kami ng

1317

pangangailangan sa araw-araw.

1318

R:

Ok Tita. Ah Tita, ikwento niyo nga sa amin Tita yung nangyari sa, dun sa issue

1319

ng creek. Ano po yung naging issue doon at ano po yung ginawa nating

1320

hakbang para ma-address yung problemang iyon? Kwentuhan niyo kami Tita.

1321

I:

Ah yung una, noong bago pa lang sila nagko-construct nitong creek,

1322

nagkaroon na ng issue na gusto kaming i-relocate sa Gawad Kalinga,Gawad

1323

Kalinga ba yun? Sa Maahas? 'Di yata yun GK, Mudho yata yun?Mudho.

1324

R:

Ano po yung Mudho, Tita?

1325

I:

Parang isang yung proyekto ng Municipal na doon ire-relocate yung mga

squatter.

1326
1327

R:

Oho.

1328

I:

Na galing-- Yung iba kasi galing Dampalit, kung saan-saan galing na ano, na...

1329

R:

Saan po ang Dampalit, Tita?

1330

I:

Sa may Lalakay, sa may Eldridge.

-more-

170

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...333

1331

R:

Ok.

1332

I:

Doon sa may pat-- bundok yun e. Marami ring tao dun na nabaha noong
nagkaroon ng Bagyong Ondoy, dun sila dinala. Milenyo pa yata yun.

1333
1334

R:

Oho.

1335

I:

Dun sila dinala. Ngayon, bago nangyari yun, nagkaroon na rin ng usaping
ganito noong bago mag-eleksyon ng 2010.

1336
1337

R:

OK.

1338

I:

Bago bumaba, bago bumaba si Mayor Salvi, ah kinausap na niya kami, inalok

1339

niya kami kung gusto naming mag-apply sa Maahas, para sa pabahay ng

1340

munisipyo. Ngayon, tinanong namin siya kung kami ba ay pinaaalis ng

1341

gobyerno sa kinatitirikan namin na easementng creek. Sabi niya hindi.

1342

R:

Ano yung easement?

1343

I:

Easement. Ah pagka nasa creek ka, yung pinakalabi ng creek.

1344

R:

OK.

1345

I:

Eto yung creek, eto yung pinaka-easement niyang 3 meters, dun kami nakaokupa.

1346
1347

R:

OK, Oho.

1348

I:

Ngayon ang sabi niya naman sa amin ni Mayor Salvi, sabi niya "Hindi naman.

1349

Hindi kayo pinaaalis ng gobyerno diyan, ang sa akin lang, bago sana ako

1350

bumaba ng pagka-Mayor, yung aking munang kabarangay, Batong Malaki, ay

1351

mabigyan ko ng sariling bahay na matatawag niyang kanya." Ngayon ang sabi

1352

niya-- Ang tanong naman namin, tinanong namin yung programa, kung anong

1353

magiging sitwasyon namin doon, e ang bungad sa amin niya ay kanya-

1354

kanyang gawa ng bahay, kanya-kanyang ah, kanya-kanyang pagagawa ng

1355

paraan kung paano ka mabubuhay doon sa lugar na iyon at walang ibibigay

1356

sa 'yong assistant (sic) ang gobyerno kundi yung materyales lamang na

1357

itatayo doon sa relocation site na yun. Kumbaga, bibigyan ka nilang

1358

materyales, raw materials, ikaw na lang mag-- bahalang itayo, kung paano mo

-more171

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...444

1359

itatayo yun. E madami sa aming nabigla sa ganun kasi bukod sa napakalayo,

1360

walang ilaw, walang tubig. Isa pa, ang ikinabubuhay ng mga tao ay nandito sa

1361

ano... E napakamahal ng transportasyon doon. Kung wala ka daw P40, P50,

1362

hindi ka makakalabas ng highway...

1363

R:

Oho.

1364

I:

Para makapunta ng palengke, ganun siya.

1365

R:

Ano pong ikinabubuhay ng mga residente dito sa Sitio Basi?

1366

I:

Ah 'andito lahat. Malapit sa-- Construction worker, tapos yung iba, yung iba

1367

naman diyan ay nag, nag-aaral, tapos yung iba naman ay nagta-tricycle. Yun

1368

ang ikinabubuhay. Yung mister ko nga e ano, nagpipintura, nangongontrata

1369

ng pintura paminsan-minsan. Hindi rin masasabi. At may konting mga

1370

tindahan dito na siya naming ikinabubuhay.

1371

R:

Opo. So ano pong naging mga hakbang ng mga residente sa pagtutol nitong

1372

mga ito sa pagtatayo noong box culvert na tinatawag sa ibabaw ng Sitio Basi

1373

Creek?

1374

I:

Nung matapos yung meeting namin nila Mayor, na yung iba nag-apply, na
hanggang ngayon naman ay hindi na-aprubahan.

1375
1376

R:

Alin po ang hindi na-aprubahan?

1377

I:

Yung housing, kasi kinapos yata ng budget yung munisipyo. Nagkaroon kami

1378

ng kutob noon, kasi diretsahan namin tinanong kay Mayor, na, kay Mayor

1379

Salvi pa noon, diretsahan naming tinanong na baka kung kaya kami pinaalis

1380

dito dahil gagamitin ng Chrysalis Academy yung lugar. Madiin niya itinanggi

1381

yung issue na yun. Sinabi niya hindi. Hindi daw yun gagamitin ng Chrysalis .

1382

Kung ayaw daw namin mag-apply, hindi kami pinipilit, at wala rin naman

1383

daw nagpapa-alis sa amin. Hindi naman daw kami pinaaalisng gobyerno dahil

1384

wala namang proyekto ang gobyerno para dito sa creek na ito.

1385

Pinanghawakan
-more172

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...555

1386

namin yung salita niyang yun. Kaya sinabi naman namin sa kanya noon na

1387

"Hindi naman po kami basta-basta nagtayo dito ng hindi nag-paalam sa inyo

1388

kaya masasabi namin na ang pagtatayo at pagbaba-- pagtira namin dito ay

1389

may otorida-- otorisasyon ninyo."

1390

R:

OK. So may pagpapaalam pong nangyari?

1391

I:

Nagpaalam nung siya'y Barangay Captain pa lang ng Batong Malaki.

1392

R:

Ah ito po'y anong taon?

1393

I:

1986, '87.

1394

R:

1986, lumapit po kayo sa kanya at nagpaalam kung pwede pong tirikan ang
lupang ito na pagmamay-ari ng gobyerno?

1395
1396

I:

Oo, at pumayag naman siya. Hanggang sa nagkaroon ng usapin noon na itong

1397

retaso ng lupa na ito, ng kalsada na'to, ay pagmamay-ari pa noong nasa dulo,

1398

mga Nuez at karamihan, na nagkakagulo noon, na ang sabi ni Kapitan noon,

1399

"Sige magtayo kayo ng bahay at walang sino man ang makakapag-paalis

1400

diyan sa inyo maliban sa gobyerno." Yun ang sinabi sa amin noon na

1401

hanggang ngayon ay yun ang pinanghahawakan namin. Tapos nung matapos

1402

yung interview, yung pagpupulong namin ni Mayor na hindi nga kami

1403

pumayag, 'di kami nag-apply, sinabi niya na "Bahala kayo, ang sa akin lang ay

1404

offer lang yun. 'Di ko naman kayo pinipilit na umalis dito." Ganun. Nung

1405

sumunod na panahon na yun, makatapos ang eleksyon, Mayo, nagkaroon na

1406

ulit ng meeting-meeting lagi dito, maya't maya meeting.

1407

R:

Saan pong meeting?

1408

I:

Nang asosasyon ng Sitio Basi Home Owners na...

1409

R:

Sino pong nangunguna sa Home Owner's Association?

1410

I:

Ang namumuno noon ay si Dexter Cabahug. Yung nakatira doon sa dulo. Siya

1411

ang presidente namin noon. Na siya ang naghahanap nglugar, siya ang

1412

kinakausap ni, Chairman pa noon, na si Gorospe. Siya ang pabalik-balik sa

-more173

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang..666

1413

loob ng Chrysalis , kinakausap ni Chairman, naghahanap ng lugar na pwede

1414

namin paglipatan na, na hindi naman kami napayag kasi ang lugar na

1415

nahanap nila noon ay sa Putho, na napakalayo na remote area, na bago mo pa

1416

madevelop e wala ring ilaw at wala ring tubig at sariling sikap mo rin ang

1417

paglipat doon. Sa ganun, wala ring linaw, 'di rin na--Wala linaw yung plano na

1418

'yon at 'di rin kami nakikipag-usap dahil ayaw naming siya ang mamagitan,

1419

gusto namin direkta. Kung si Chairman ang makikipag-usap sa amin, yun ang

1420

gusto naming mangyari.

1421

R:

Sa inyong pamilya dito, Katimbang or hindi lang Katimbang family?

1422

I:

Sa lahat mg residente dito.

1423

R:

So OK, ayaw niyo po na yung head lang, yung pinuno lang ng Home Owner's
Association dito sa Sitio Basi ang mamagitan...

1424
1425

I:

Oo.

1426

R:

Kundi kayo mismo ay gusto makipagusap sa kanila. Kayong mga residente

dito.

1427
1428

I:

Tama. Oo, tama yun. E di--Noong panahon namang yun, yung mister ko ay

1429

wala, nasa Davao. Ako lang ang nag-iisa dito hanggang sa nagulat na lang ako,

1430

isang araw pinuntahan ako dito ni Chairman na...

1431

R:

Mga anong taon po ito, Tita?

1432

I:

2000-- Ang eleksyon ay 2010 ano? December 2009. Yun yun.

1433

R:

So wala pang eleksyon Tita?

1434

I:

Wala pang eleksyon, nangyari na yun bago pa naganap yung pagpupulong

1435

kay Mayor. Napuntahan na ako ni Chairman dito. Na yun ang usapan lagi-lagi,

1436

na lagi na lang kami nagkakagulo dito. Ah December yun, tapos ng matapos

1437

ang eleksyon, sunod-sunod na yung pag-- parang issue, issue ng creek na ito.

1438

R:

Ano pong sinabi sa inyo ni Chairman Gorospe?

1439

I:

Noong nagpunta siya sa akin?

-more174

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang..777

1440

R:

Noongnagpunta po siya ditoDecember 2009?

1441

I:

Ang sabi niya sa akin, lumipat daw muna ako dito sa apartment niyang nabili,

1442

sa Promentillas Apartment. Ito daw creek ay huhukayin para lumuwag ang

1443

daluyan ng tubig at aayusin.Lumipat daw muna kami. Kasama yung nanay

1444

kosa kanyang apartment. Tinanong ko siya, sabi ko "Bakit po pagkatapos po

1445

ba ng pag-aayos niyo sa creek ay pwede kaming bumalik uli'?" Ang sagot niya

1446

ay hindi na, hindi na daw. So ang nasa isip ko hindi na niya gigibain ang

1447

kanyang apartment kasi pinatira niya kami doon. Ah sabi niya "Hindi.

1448

Gigibain ko rin 'yang apartment." So sa instinct ko, biglang nagulat ako,

1449

nasagot ko siya ng "Ano hong ibig niyong sabihin? Saan kami titira?"Anong

1450

gusto niyang mangyari?"Itatapon niyo kami? Kasi hindi niyo kami pwede,

1451

hindi niyo pinababalik sa tabi ng creek, tapos gigibain niyo naman yung

1452

pinaglipatan sa amin dahil bahay niyo yun. Sa'n kami dadalhin?" Ang sagot

1453

niya sa akin, "Huwag kang mag-alala, tutulungan naman namin kayo.

1454

Ihahanap namin kayo-- Mag-uusap pa naman tayo." Ang sagotko sa kanya "'Di

1455

po ako makakapagdesisyon dahil wala po ang mister ko, nasa Davao." Tapos

1456

hiningi niya sa'kin yung number, siya na lang daw maka-- makikipag-usap.

1457

Tumanggi ako na ibigay yung number. Tapos sabi ko "Kami ho munang

1458

dalawa ang mag-uusap kung kelan siya uuwi o ano." Tapos inofferan niya ng

1459

trabaho yung mister ko, tinanong niya kung anong trabaho, sabi niya pauwiin

1460

ko na at bibigyan niya daw ng trabaho. Sabi ko, sabi niya "Kailan ba ang uwi?"

1461

Sabi ko "'Di ko pa ho alam." Ang sabi kong ganun. Tapos yun, after nun,

1462

natuloy na nga yung meeting ni Mayor. Hindi naniniwala sa akin si Mayor na

1463

nagpunta sa akin si Chairman,na kinausap ako ng ganun.

1464

R:

Ito po ay si Mayor?

1465

I:

Salvi.

1466

R:

Salvi pa rin.

-more175

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...888

1467

I:

Na ako'y kinausap ni Chairman ng ganun. At sabi niya sa akin, chismis-

1468

chismis. Sabi ko "Hindi po. Talagang nagpunta siya at kahit tanungin niyo

1469

siya. Kasama pa si Architect Tanceco." Ewan ko kung kilala mo yun. Sa UP din

1470

yun. At si Architect Tanceco ang kasama niya at kilala rin niya yung mister ko

1471

dahil naging kontratista niya yung mister ko e, naging estimator niya, kaya

1472

kilala niya. Tapos sabi ni, ni Mayor "Hindi ko alam yan. 'Yang anong yan.

1473

'Yang issue na yan." Kaka-- Kasi prinangka ko si Mayor, sabi ko, "'Di kaya

1474

Mayor, kaya niyo ako, kaya niyo kami ino-offeran ng ganyan dahil gagamitin

1475

ng, gagamitin ng Chrysalis yung lugar namin?" At yun nga, itinanggi niya

1476

talaga yun na hindi daw. Tapos ngayon eto na, lumilitaw na ganun talaga ang

1477

issue. Eto na at nangyayari na talaga. Kaya noong matapos yun, matapos ang

1478

eleksyon, ah June, July, tuloy-tuloy ang issue na yan. Nagkakaroon na ng

1479

sukatan ng kalsada, nagkakaroon na ng sukatan ng mga mohon-mohon dahil

1480

ito ay nabili na niya, Promentillas. Hanggang sa dumating ang December,

1481

gumawa na ng aksyon yung mister ko. Kasi inuumpisahan nanila yung

1482

construction dito. Gumawa na ng aksyon, lumapit na sa kapitan.

1483

R:

Ok. Sige Tita, bago natin ikwento Tita yung mga aksyon-- So Tita para po--Ta-

1484

- Ang balak po talaga ay takpan itong creek Tita. At para po ba takpan itong

1485

creek ay kailangan po ba matibag po itong bahay ninyo, ganun po no, Tita? So

1486

may connection po yung issue ng pagpapaalis sa inyo at yung pagtatakip ng

1487

creek?

1488

I:

Oo.

1489

R:

Kasi po para nga po matakpan yung creek, kailangan po matibag muna yung
bahay niyo, tama po ba yun Tita?

1490
1491

I:

Tama yun.

1492

R:

So may connection pa rin talaga siya, yung pagpapaalis sa inyo at yung sa box

1493

culvert?

-more176

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...999

1494

I:

Oo.

1495

R:

Ok Tita. Tapos, sige po, yung mga aksyon nga Tita.December po ito ng anong
taon, Tita?

1496
1497

I:

December 2010, nagumpisa na yung unang, ah unang harassment nila na

1498

matatawag ko kasi lahat ng kanilang empleyado ng Chrysalis Academy,

1499

pinagbawalan nilang bumili sa tindahan namin.

1500

R:

Ano pong klaseng tindahan? Sari-sari store po ba or karinderya?

1501

I:

Sari-sari store tsaka karinderya.

1502

R:

OK po.

1503

I:

E ang construction worker nila, ang mga empleyado nila sa loob ay dito sa

1504

amin nangungutang, nabili, nagme-merienda; pinagbawalan nila na walang

1505

lalabas, walang bibili. Ang mahuli nila na may bumili, tatanggalin sa trabaho.

1506

R:

Paano niyo po nalaman na may ganung klaseng rule, Tita? May nakapagkwento po ba sa inyo na empleyado ng Chrysalis ?

1507
1508

I:

May nagsabi sa amin na hindi na sila bibili muna dahil pinagbabawalan sila.

1509

R:

OK. Sa mismong,sa partikular na tindahan niyo, Tita?

1510

I:

Oo.

1511

R:

"Na huwag bumili sa tindahan nila Lilia, ng mga Katimbang" Ganun po ang
sina-- Ganun daw po ang rule?

1512
1513

I:

Oo, ang instruction. Ang instuctio-- Kahit saang tindahan dito sa labas, wala

1514

daw bibili dahil ang pera daw ng Chrysalis , dun daw kami nabubuhay sa pera

1515

ng Chrysalis . Ibig sabihin nun,para kami mamatay sa gutom, 'di kami

1516

makinabang ng pera nila, papatayin nila kami para wala kaming ikabuhay.

1517

Ganun ang ginawa. Tapos nun, December, lumabas yung issue na yun

1518

magtatapos na ang taon.

1519

R:

Opo.

1520

I:

Ah, early pala, November yun. November. Last week sila ng November sila

-more177

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...101010

1521

nag-bawal, tapos December nag-file na nga action yung mister ko kasi nga

1522

inuumpisahan na nila yung construction dun sa dulo noong mga pagtatakip

1523

ng culvert. Naghuhukay na sila. Ah, ang sabi ng mister ko, nagpadala na siya

1524

ng sulat, petition letter kami sa Barangay, kay Gov, kay E.R., tapos sa DPWH,

1525

dito sa Chrysalis Academy, tapos doon sa DENR.

1526

R:

Opo. Ito pong petition letter ay para saan po?

1527

I:

Para--Una sa Barangay para gaawan nila ng aksyon. Tignan nila, inspeksyonin

nila kung tama yung gingawa.

1528
1529

R:

Opo. Ginagawang ano po?

1530

I:

Construction ng creek.

1531

R:

Opo.

1532

I:

Pagtatakip ng creek. Kasi una muna naming aalamin syempre kung tama ba o
mali yung aming gagawing hakbang na pagtutol. Baka naman kasi mali...

1533
1534

R:

Opo.

1535

I:

Yung aming gagawin. Kinukuha namin yung opinyon ng mga opisiyal sa

gobyerno.

1536
1537

R:

Sino po ang nag-advise na petition letter ang gawing hakbang?

1538

I:

Ang nag-- Wala e. Basta inano lang ng mister ko e, na...

1539

R:

Oho. So parang ideya niya po ito?

1540

I:

Ideya niya yan namagawa ng petition letter kasi ang maapektuhan una, kami.

1541

R:

Oho.

1542

I:

Kaming mga komunidad dito.

1543

R:

Opo.

1544

I:

Kaya ang sabi niya kung sino man yung mga tutol na magawa iyan, siyang
pipirma.

1545
1546

R:

Oho. Sino po ang nag-prepare ng petition letter?

1547

I:

Yung mister ko rin. Siya rin ang nagawa nun.

-more178

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...111111

1548

R:

Ok po. At ilan pong mga, mga pirma ang ating nakalap sa petition letter na
iyon?

1549
1550

I:

Ayan, yan ay, ano yata yan. 'Di ko na nabilang yan.

1551

R:

Opo.

1552

I:

Siguro'y nasa isang daan. Basta yung mga residente lang dito sa amin.

1553

R:

Opo, mga residente dito.

1554

I:

More or less 100.

1555

R:

Ah oho.

1556

I:

Dito sa amin.

1557

R:

Oho.

1558

I:

Kasi yung sa labas ng ano, 'di na kami nagpapirma e, dito lang sa lugar namin.

1559

R:

So binigay po sa Barangay Cap-- Barangay Hall.

1560

I:

Oo, sa Barangay Captain. Wala namang aksyon na nangyari. Ni hindi kami

1561

pinatawag. 'Di ko lang alam kung pinatawag ang presidente namin. Wala

1562

kaming alam. Tapos nagbigay kami sa DPWH, nagbigay kami sa, kay E.R.

1563

Tapos nag-email, actually nag-email pa nga yata kami e kay Gov, tapos dito sa

1564

DENR.

1565

R:

mga ahensyang yun ang sumagot?

1566
1567

At sa lahat ng mga ahensya na binigyan niyo ng petition letter, sino po dun sa

I:

Tanging DENR lang kasi yun ang kinulit ng mister ko talaga. Kasi ang

1568

pagkakaalam ng mister ko, 'pag DENR, environmental, kalikasan ang

1569

naaapektuhan kaya yun talaga ang alam niya na kailangang lapitan, sa

1570

kalikasan. At yung-- Sila ang, kumbaga sila ang may batas sa mga creek na

1571

ganyan. Kung ano ang batas diyan. Ah unang una kasi yung kumpare namin

1572

ding isa ay nagtatrabaho sa DENR Kapitolyo, kaya siya ang nagpayo sa amin

1573

na dalhin diyan sa bayan DENR, sa Senro, at gawin ang ganung proseso na

1574

sumulat, magreklamo, ganyan. At ganun nga ang aming ginawa. Tapos

-more179

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...121212

1575

December 7, naglabas na nga sila ng parang TRO, ang DENR dito sa Chrysalis

1576

Academy para itigil yung construction nila.

1577

R:

Oho.

1578

I:

Hanggang sa napa-receive naman namin yung sulat na yun. Natanggap

1579

naman nila kaya imposibleng hindi nila alam yung reklamo naming yun kasi

1580

na-receive nila, may kopya kami. Wala pa rin silang action, pinapapatuloy pa

1581

rin nila.

1582

R:

Oho.

1583

I:

Hanggang sa tinawagan na ng mister ko yung nakapirma dun sa received

letter...

1584
1585

R:

Pinagpapatuloy po nila ang?

1586

I:

Construction ng culvert. Hanggang sa tinawagan ng mister ko yung Jean

Castillo...

1587
1588

R:

Siya po ay?

1589

I:

Na administrator ngayon ng Chrysalis Academy, at ang sabi niya ay "Bakit

1590

ninyo pinagpapatuloy pa rin yung construction ninyo, e samantalang meron

1591

na kayong TRO galing DENR?" Ah, itinatanggi niya na wala daw construction

1592

na ginagawa hanggang sa nagkainitan sila sa telepono. Hindi na siya

1593

sinasagot kapag tinatawagan ng mister ko. Tapos ng bandang huli, pina-

1594

tarpaulin yung pinaka-TRO letter ng DENR at yun na. Dun na nag-umpisa kasi

1595

kinabit nila diyan sa may puno ng mangga dun sa unahan.

1596

R:

Unahan po ng Chrysalis .

1597

I:

Oo dito. Hindi naman mismo sa kanilang property pero dito na sa ano namin.
Diba may unahang bahay diyan, bago kela Nanay Arcely.

1598
1599

R:

Oho.

1600

I:

May puno dun ng mangga sa harap. Dun nila pinako yung pinaka-tarpaulin

1601

para mabasa ng kahit sinong darating yung TRO na yun.

-more180

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...131313

1602

R:

Opo.

1603

I:

Ang ginawa ng Chrysalis , tinanggal. Ang ginawa naman ng mister ko nagpatarpaulin ulit.

1604
1605

R:

Oho.

1606

I:

At kinabit ulit. Ang huling nagtanggal ay ang mga pulis na, pulis ng La Merced.

1607

Na ang kasalukuyang namayor na kasi ngayon ay si Gorospe. 2011 na yan

1608

nangyari. December yun. Ang bilis ng pangyayari. Weeks lang ang pagitan.

1609

R:

po ba siyang role dito sa Chrysalis Administration, sa inyong pagkakaalam?

1610
1611

Ano pong kinalaman ni Lance Gorospe dito sa Chrysalis . Ano pong-- Meron

I:

Ang pagkakaalam ko kasi, kanila yan e. Sa Gorospe e. O kung hindi naman

1612

talaga totally lahat kanila, isa rin siya sa may ari niyan. Yun ang pagkakaalam

1613

namin. At ang isa pa nun, siya ay Mayor, kaya ma-impluwensiya at kaya

1614

niyang gawin lahat.Paikutin lahat ng pangyayari.Kaya niyang hawakan lahat

1615

ang departamento ng La Merced, dahil alam naman nating siya ang naka-

1616

upong Mayor ngayon.Maging 'yang sangay ng DENR La Merced ay kayang-

1617

kaya nila yang-- Sabi nga nila ay nag-sanction lang sila ng P50, 000 para dun

1618

sa culvert na itinayo nila. Yun. Kasi kami ang um-attend nung ipinakulong

1619

nila yung mister ko, kami yung um-attend ng technical hearing sa DENR.

1620

R:

Katimbang?

1621
1622

Nung nagkaroon po ng technical hearing, nakulong na po si Sir Placido

I:

Oo. January 10 yun. January 4 nadampot yung mister ko. January 10, walang

1623

um-attend na representative ang Chrysalis Academy kahit isa. Ayun ah, doon

1624

pa lamang, alam na namin na wala talagang aattend sa kanila. Alam namin

1625

yun?

1626

R:

Ano po ang layunin ng technical conference na iyon at saan po yun ginanap?

1627

I:

Sa DENR mismo ng Lalakay, Senro. Ang layunin kasi noon, para ma--

1628

magkalinawagan ang Head Engineering Office ng DPWH ay nandun din,

-more181

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...141414

1629

maging si Isidro yung head ng DENR La Merced ay nandun din at si Attorney

1630

Ma-- Yung babae, 'di ko na ma-- matandaan na attorney ng DENR ay nandun

1631

din lahat. Bukod tanging ang Chrysalis lamang, tsaka yung Sangguniang

1632

Bayan ng Kalikasan, nandun din. Siya lang, bukod tanging ang representative

1633

ng Chrysalis ang walang dumalo.

1634

R:

conference na iyon?

1635
1636

Sa in-- Sa panig po ng residente sa Sitio Basi, sino po ang dumalo sa technical

I:

Oo, ah ilan ba kami noon? Parang lima yata kami noon. Si Nanay Vivian, ako,

1637

si Nanay Cory, Si Nanay Markova, si Nanay, sino pa ba yung isa? 'Di ko na

1638

maalala yung isa.

1639

R:

Oho.

1640

I:

Basta ang alam ko yata lima yata kami. Oo parang ganun.

1641

R:

Oho.

1642

I:

Ah si Rosemarie. Oo.

1643

R:

Oho. Bakit po nadakip ang inyong asawa noong January 4, 2010 (sic)?

1644

I:

Ah, hanggang ngayon kasi, yan din ang 'di ko alam. Pero ang sinabi nila ay

1645

drug pusher daw. At isinisigaw sa kanilang salaysay ng mga pulis na nahuli

1646

nila sa akto na nagbebenta ng drugs sa tabi ng kalsada yung dalawa, ni Zaldy

1647

at ni Placido Katimbang. At ng panahon na yun ay talagang malinaw pa sa isip

1648

ko na madaming tao dito na nakatestigo, kita nila na yung asawa ko ay

1649

kararating lamang ng bahay, 'di na lumabas. Lumabas siya nung ibinigay ko

1650

yung sulat ng DENR sa kanya. Sabi ko sa kanya "'Chard, eto may notice ang

1651

DENR, may meeting ka sa January 10." Sabi ko, "Makaka-attend ka ba dahil

1652

may trabaho ka sa IRRI?" Sabi niya " Baka hindi ako maka-attend kasi may

1653

trabaho, kauumpisa lang, 'di ako pwedeng um-absent. Ibibigay ko na 'yon kay

1654

Nanay Socorro Lim, siya na lang ang paa-attendin ko." Lumabas siya, kinuha

1655

niya 'yang,'yung ano, at pumunta siya sa dulo, ibinigay yung sulat.

-more-

182

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...151515

1656

Pagkagaling dun, umuwi na siya, dumiretso na siya dito sa bahay. Nahiga,

1657

nagpahinga. Hanggang sa, kaya naman siya lumabas ulit, hinahanap niya yung

1658

charger niya. Sabi niya "Nalimutan ko yung charger ko sa IRRI." E Baka hindi

1659

maalala ng kasama niya si Haji, yung asawa ni Annie, na testigo, malimutan

1660

hugutin, e magkasunog. "Itext mo nga kung anong number ni Haji. Ganyan.

1661

Sabiko, "Yun pa rin." E hindi daw nasagot sa kanya, tinatawagan niya, hindi

1662

nasagot. Lumabas siya para tanungin dun sa asawa kung ano yung number

1663

nung asawa. Paglabas niya, nandun si Annie, dun sa tindahan ni Nanay Cely,

1664

tapos si Zaldy na kagagarahe lamang, nandun sa mesa, nagsusulat ng sa STL,

1665

kuwan, yung nagpapataya. Ah, tinanong niya yung number dun kay Annie.

1666

Sabi niya "Annie, anong number ni Haji?" Sabi e, "Ganun pa rin po Kuya

1667

Ricky." Sabi e "Hindi kasi sinasagot.""Baka po patay yung cellphone o kaya ay

1668

nasa bag" Sabing ganun, sabi niya. Ah 'di, umuwi na uli' si Placido. Yung

1669

pagkakaupo niZaldy doon, 'di sila nag-usap na dalawa.

1670

R:

Oho.

1671

I:

Hindi niya pinansin si Zaldy . 'Di daw talaga sila nag-usap, umuwi na siya.
Andito kasi kami, may mga tao dito na kumakain nung gabing yun tapos...

1672
1673

R:

Dito po sa table na 'to?

1674

I:

Oo, dito mismo. Na nagkataon naman ay yung isang estudyante dito ay dating

1675

estudyante ng Chrysalis . E nabisita sa'kin lagi yung batang iyon kahit na nag-

1676

transfer na sa Perpetual.

1677

R:

Oho.

1678

I:

Nabisita lagi sa'kin kasi dito na sila tumambay halos ng one year e.

1679

R:

Oho.

1680

I:

Parang kapamilya na rin ang turing nila sa akin. Ayun, kahit, yun pwede mo

1681

ma-interview 'pag ano kasi meron siyang bar diyan sa LB Square. Ah, sabi nga

1682

niya sa akin, "(Mom)'my, kapag kailangan niyo pa ng testigo, tetestigo ako."

-more183

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...161616

1683

Sabi niya ganun. Talagang nung araw na yun, si Kuya Placido niya ay nandun

1684

lang sa loob ng bahay, at kita lang nila na dumating at ganun lang ang

1685

nangyari. At saksi silakasi halos one year sila dito sa bahay kasi eto lang

1686

school nila e. Pagka-vacant period nila, nandito silang lahat. Dito sila lahat

1687

nagpapahinga, ah mga ilang oras, tapos mga broken hour kasi sila e. Ganun

1688

'pag college. Dito lang sila nakatambay. Kaya saksi sila doon sa buhay naming

1689

mag-asawa.

1690

R:

Oho.

1691

I:

Kaya tinuring nila kaming magulang, Mommy ang tawag sa akin, kay Placido
naman ay Boss Katimbang ang tawag nila.

1692
1693

R:

Heh heh heh

1694

I:

Kaya nila tinatawag na Boss, pagkaluto niya ng aming paninda, hihiga na yan,

1695

manonood ng TV, 'pag bumangon, kakain, hihiga ulit, babangon, kakain. Kaya

1696

tawag nila Boss Katimbang.Heh heh heh.

1697

R:

Heh heh

1698

I:

Ganun ang ano nila, bansag nila. Kaya 'di sila makapaniwala na sabi niya

1699

"Matagal din kaming nasa inyo pero wala talagang--" Kahit ang inom nga

1700

sa'min, hindi ako nagpapainom ng ano e, may limit, for occassion lang. Tsaka

1701

'di ako, sabihin ko na "O, hanggang isang bote lang kayo, hanggang isang o

1702

dalawang bote lang kayo." Ganyan. "Tama na." At kailangan Friday, yung

1703

walang klase kinabukasan.

1704

R:

Oho.

1705

I:

O kaya Sabado, may araw. 'Di pwede yung may klase. Ganun ang naging batas

1706

ko kaya sabi ng mga estudyante, "Ano? Ganun ang ikinaso?" Natatawa lang

1707

sila kasi pag-inom pa lamang e mahigpit na ako e, yun pa kayang, sabi niya

1708

"'My, kung ganun e 'di sana pinagbentahan na kami? Ang dami-dami naming

1709

estudyante dito." Kumbaga nagkaroon na sila dapat ng mga idea na ganun na

-more184

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...171717

1710

pwede niyang gawing customer yung mga estudyante dito na laging

1711

tumambay. Kaya sabi ko, "Kayo, kayo na nakakakilala sa amin, loob at labas

1712

ng bahay namin e alam niyo na, e siguro 'di na kayo, di ko naman para kayo'y

1713

kumbinsihin kung kayo'y maniniwala sa amin o hindi. Kayo lang ang

1714

pwedeng humusga sa amin."

1715

R:

Oho.

1716

I:

"Kasi nagkasama tayo ng--" O kahit ngayon e, 'pagnagkikita-kita kami ng mga

batang yan, napasyal pa rin sila dito.

1717
1718

R:

Ano pong mga pangalan nila Tita? Pwedeng malaman?

1719

I:

Oo, yung si Chow, taga-maahas yun. Yung si Alex, taga-Calamba. Yung isa na si
Abby, taga-- Actually yung si Abby ay, kilala mo si Alan Gomez?

1720
1721

R:

Ah hindi po e.

1722

I:

Yung pinatay ni Sanchez? Ni Mayor Sanchez? Si Arlene Sarmienta, na naging

issue kaya nakakulong ngayon si Mayor Sanchez.

1723
1724

R:

Oho.

1725

I:

Bayaw niya yun. Yung si Abby Gomez.

1726

R:

Oho.

1727

I:

Itong sila Heidi na taga-UP, na sa UP kasi-- UPCO.

1728

R:

Oho.

1729

I:

Tapos itong sila Iyo, Froilan Oyas, na diyan pa rin nag-aaral, graduating na. Si

1730

Jobert, si Noel, sila Beverly, sila Larcen. Madami sila. Andami nila ditong

1731

tumambay. Halos yung mga Chrysalis Academy na mga cheering dancer nila,

1732

R:

Oho.

1733

I:

Halos lahat dito. Pati teacher.

1734

R:

Heh heh.

1735

I:

Dito na rin tumatambay, yung mga prof, prof nila.

1736

R:

So yung pong mga mag-aaral at yung mga teacherng Chrysalis na nakakadayo

-more185

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...181818

dito, may alam sila dun sa issue-ng ito, dun sa creek?

1737
1738

I:

Wala.

1739

R:

Oho.

1740

I:

Kasi nung nangyari yun, wala na sila diyan sa Chrysalis .

1741

R:

Oho.

1742

I:

'Di ko alam ba't nagreresign o tinatanggal sila ng Administration o ng Dean.

1743

'Di ko alam hanggang sa umunti na ng umunti ang estudyante diyan kasi nga

1744

nahirapan sila sa mahal na tuition.

1745

R:

Oho.

1746

I:

Ganun. Number 1 yun. Iilan na lang yung mga naandyan. Yun si Carl

1747

Leviste.Andiyan pa rin.Yung pamangkin ni Dr. Reyes. Yun mababait yung mga

1748

batang yun na sila, sila ang makakapagsabi na, hindi naman totally kami na

1749

ano, makakapagsabi na naalok ba sila ng drugs o ano, in-offeran ba sila mag-

1750

drugs o kahit marijuana. Sila ang makakapagsabi na, usually naman kasi

1751

kapag ganun e, 'pag B.I. ka, B'I. ka talaga. Lahat ng iyong mga ano,

1752

maiimpluwensiyahan mo. Sila ang makakapagsabi.Yung mga estudyanteng

1753

yun. At hindi naman ang mga batang yun babalik-balik sa amin kung talagang

1754

alam nila na totoo yun.

1755

R:

Opo. So atin pong dine-deny yung accusation na nagda-drug pushing itong

1756

sila Sir Placido Katimbang at si, at yung kasama niya rin sa ano, sa kulungan

1757

po na si SirZaldy Fe.

1758

I:

Talagang idinidiin ko talagang walang katotohanan yung kanilang sinasabing

1759

yun kasi kung totoo yun, ah unang-una niyang maiimpluwensiyahan ay

1760

etsudyante ng Chrysalis .

1761

R:

Oho.

1762

I:

Kasi yun lang ang malapit sa amin. Kaya yan ang masasabi ko. Kasi kung

1763

totoo yun, siguro wala ng estudya-- kakalat na sa loob nila na may pusher

1764

dito.
-more186

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...191919

1765

At hindi na nila palalabasin ang estudyante nila, diba? E siguro, dapat yun

1766

ang una nilang nalaman.

1767

R:

Oho.

1768

I:

Yun ang una nilang ano, magkaroon sila ng witness sa loob ng eskwelahan

1769

nila dahil napaka-unti ng estudyante nila para hindi nila ma-monitor yan.

1770

Yun, yun na nga lang pagsisigarilyo e, pinagbawal nila sa loob e.

1771

R:

Oho.

1772

I:

Kaya yun pa kayang drugs?

1773

R:

Oho.

1774

I:

Hindi nila ma-monitor na eto lang ako? Eto lang kami sa tabi. Kaya nagulat

1775

kami sa ganun nilang akusasyon. Sabi ko napaka--ah kung iisipin, dapat

1776

masusi nilang pinagplanuhan yung ginawa nilang yan. Kasi hindi, hindi

1777

sasapat yung kanilang ebidensya doon sa magiging testigo namin kung yun

1778

ang pagbabasihan. Hindi sasapat yung ebidensya nila.Hindi ko rin masasabi

1779

pero naniniwala akong sa bawat itatanong namin at sa bawat isasagot namin

1780

e may kaya kaming ilabas na pruweba.

1781

R:

Oho.

1782

I:

Sa gagawin nilang paglilitis sa amin,kaya naming tapatan kung ano mang

ilalaban nilang ebidensya.

1783
1784

R:

istorya? Na hindi naman talaga sila nagda-drug pushing?

1785
1786

Oho. Bakit ho kaya sila nakulong kung ganun po pala ang kine-claim nating

I:

Ay number 1 talaga yang aming pinaglalaban na creek. Kasi sabi nga nila
kami'y sore to the eye.

1787
1788

R:

Sino pong nagsabi nun Tita?

1789

I:

Ang mga Gorospe. Chrysalis Academy. Na kahit naman yung iba ring

1790

kapitbahay naming mayayaman matagal na kaming pini-petition dito na

1791

paalisin kasi sore to the eye nga daw kami sa kanilang komunidad. Pero

1792

bagama't kami'y
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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...202020

1793

pangitsa paningin, masasabi ko naman na hindi kami perwisyo sa lansangan.

1794

At kahit kailan na magsabi ditong residente, wala kaming pinerwisyo, walang

1795

inaway sa kanila, walang, wala silang mairereklamo sa mga tao dito na

1796

sasabihin nila na kinursunada sila, yung mga anak nila binastos, wala naman.

1797

At wala namang masasabing ninakawan sila, ganun. Ah, kami mahirap pero

1798

'di kami ganung kapitbahay. Sabi ko, kami mababait, tahimik. Kung ano ang

1799

gusto nila, kung anong maitutulong namin, tutulong kami. At kalimitan, kami

1800

ang gumagawa dito ng kagaya ng paglilinis ng kalsada, kung may mga baha,

1801

kami nangunguna sa paglilinis.

1802

R:

Oho.

1803

I:

E ang reyalidad kasi, 'di mo naman mapapahawak ng pala ang mga nag-

1804

oopisina e. Kaya itong mahihirap dinna kapitbahay nila ang gagawa nun para

1805

sa aming lugar. Yun ang katotohanan doon.

1806

R:

Kayo Tita, dito sa buong isyung ito, dito sa creek, dun sa pagpapaalis sa inyo,

1807

dun sa pagkakakulong ng iyong asawang si Placido Katimbang, ano po yung

1808

mga ginaw--kayo mismo, personal, anong ginawa niyo Tita upang ihatid yung

1809

inyong protesta sa laban sa mga bagay na ito? Kayo paano niyo

1810

kinommunicate, ika nga? Paano niyo inihatid ang inyong protesta? Anong

1811

mga ginawa ninyo bilang kayo Tita, bilang isang indibidwal?

1812

I:

Sa pagkakakulong ng mister ko?

1813

R:

Sa pagkakakulong Tita, sa pagkakatakip ng creek. Sa pagkaka-- Sa pagte-

1814

threaten sa inyo na umalis dito sa Sitio Basi. Kayo Tita ay isa-isahin nga po

1815

natin ang inyong mga ginawang paraan para maihatid niyo o ma-

1816

communicate yung inyong pagtutol?

1817

I:

Ah, unang-una, nung mahuli nila, nung padakip nila si Placido, kasama ako.

1818

Nung ako'y makapag-piyansa, unang gumabay sa amin yung kapitbahay

1819

namin, si Nanay Socorro Lim at tinulungan nga kami na mapaabot sa

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...212121

1820

Kasangga para maturuan kami kung anong dapat gawin. Ang una ko sigurong

1821

nagawa ay i-ah, i-ano ko, ilabas ko ang damdamin ko sa kalsada. Talagang

1822

um-attend, naglunsad kami ng mga rally, uma-attend ako ng mga meeting, ng

1823

mga patawag, kungsaan merong mga pulong ng mga-- sa pagkakaalam ko

1824

mailalahad ko yung hinanakit at tsaka lahat ng takot ko ay doon ko lang

1825

nailalabas sa kalsada. Yun ang unang-una kong pamamaraan na ang

1826

paniniwala ko'y isang malaking tulong sa amin. Dahil kung nanaig ang takot

1827

ko siguro, ah wala na kami dito ngayon. Sa pamamaraan kong sigurong yun,

1828

dun ko lang siguro nailalabas lahat yung, yung tunay na pangyayari. Kasi 'di

1829

mo naman, 'di malalaman ng lahat ng tao e kung hindi ka maglulunsad o mag-

1830

aano ng, magsasalita sa kalsada. Ang sabi ko nga, kung yung ibang tao na

1831

hindi namin kakilala ay pinaniniwalaan kami, papaano pa kaya yung mga

1832

taong nakakakilala sa amin naang mabubuo sa isip nila ganun talaga. Nabaka

1833

totoo, baka ganyan. Kasi yung hindi naman natin kilala, pwede nilang,

1834

maniwala sila automatic sayo, 'pag one side lang ang maririnig. Pero yung

1835

kakilala namin, magkakaroon pa yan ng doubt sa ano nila na baka nga totoo.

1836

Magtatanong pa sila sa sarili nila.

1837

R:

Oho.

1838

I:

E yun, inaano ko talaga na, doon ko lahat nailalabas, ang, yunang unang-una

1839

kong naging hakbang tapos kumapit sa Panginoon, yun ang unang-una kong,

1840

wala talagang makakapagbigay lakas ng loob sa akin kung hindi talaga niya

1841

ko ginabayan kung anong dapat kong gawin.

1842

R:

Paano niya kayo ginabayan Tita?

1843

I:

Siguro dahil sa panahon ngayon ay buhay ako. Heh heh heh. Yun ang, yun ang

1844

ano doon. Yun ang tinatawag na gabay kasi kung 'di niya ako ginabayan, wala

1845

na ko ngayon. Sa paniniwala ko nga na maimpluwensiyang tao ang gumawa

1846

ng mga bagay na iyan sa amin. At himala na nga na pader lang ang pagitan ay

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...222222

nandito pa rin kami.

1847
1848

R:

Oho.

1849

I:

Ay talagang ang Diyos ay buhay. Walang imposible. Pero sabi nga ay, "Ingatan

1850

mo ang 'yong buhay at iingatan ka rin niya." Yun ang pinaniniwalaan ko kaya

1851

sabi ko alam ko naman ng kung talagang kukunin niya ko, walang

1852

makakapigil. Sabi ko sa kahit sa anong paraan, mangyayari yan. Yun, yun. At

1853

ang aming abugado ay, napakapalad namin, napakabait, napakasuportado at...

1854

R:

Ano ho ulit ang pangalan niya?

1855

I:

Si Atty. Emilio Kapulong.

1856

R:

Isa siyang Human Rights lawyer.

1857

I:

Oo, Human Rights lawyer. Presidente pala siya ng NUCPL, mga abugado.
People's Law yung huli, 'di ko na naintindihan yung una, heh heh heh.

1858
1859

R:

Oho.

1860

I:

Na yun. Napakaswerte namin, siya ang humawak ng aming kaso na hindi

1861

kayang bayaran. Kasi kung ordinaryong abugado lang yun e, siguro

1862

nabayaran na yung abugado namin. Kasi pilit nilang inaalam, magkano daw

1863

binabayadnamin sa abugado namin. Papaano namin nakuha? Papaano namin

1864

nalaman yung--ah papaano namin nababayaran? Yun e, inaalam nila, lahat ng

1865

detalye.

1866

R:

Oho.

1867

I:

Sabi ko bakit nila tinatanong?

1868

R:

Sino po itong mga nagtatanong?

1869

I:

Pulis. Inaalam nila kung magkano bayad namin sa abugado.

1870

R:

Oho.

1871

I:

At kung papaano namin nakuha si Atty. Kapulong.

1872

R:

Ah, opo.

1873

I:

'Di ko maintindihan kung bakit sila nagtatanong ng ganun. Sensitibong

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...232323

1874

tanong na hindi naman dapat itanong ng isang na-aakusa sa amin. Yun lang.

1875

Nahihiwagaan ako.

1876

R:

Oho.

1877

I:

Kung ano ang motibo nila?

1878

R:

Tita nabanggit niyo kanina yung mga pagra-rally sa labas. Saan niyo ito
ginagawa?Sinong mga kasama niyo?Kailan niyo ito ginagawa?

1879
1880

I:

Ginagawa namin yan kapagka, ah, gaya noong 100 days nila. Tapos 'pag may
hearing.

1881
1882

R:

100 days. San po ginawa yun Tita?

1883

I:

Dito sa may paanan ng Munisipyo ng La Merced.

1884

R:

Ok. Kung saan nandun din yung pinagkukulungan ni Sir Placido Katimbang?
Opo. Sino pong mga kasama niyo dito Tita?

1885
1886

I:

Mga kapitbahay namin, tapos yung mga Kasangga supporters. LSG kung

1887

tawagin namin. Kung saan-saang lugar na kinabibilangan ng Kasangga. Sila

1888

mga nasuporta sa amin. Tapos yung mga tao na naniniwala sa dalawa na

1889

talagang walang kasalanan.

1890

R:

Oho. Opo. Ah Tita sa buo-- sa kabuuan ng issue na ito, kayo yung isa sa mga

1891

tao na hindi natakot lumaban at tumutol sa ganitong uri ng hakbang na

1892

ginawa ng Chrysalis no? Yung pagko-cover halimbawa ng Sitio Basi creek.

1893

Ano po yung nagdulot sa inyo na hindi matakot at lumaban? Ano po yung

1894

mga-- Meron ba kayong mga naging inspirasyon o impluwensya? Ano yung,

1895

ano yung naging dahilan kung bakit pinili niyong lumaban?

1896

I:

Unang-unang dahilan kasi, pumasok sa isip ko ay wala kaming kasalanan.

1897

Kung ano man, kung kasalanan man ang ginawa namin sa pagtutol diyan sa

1898

creek, naniniwala kami sa batas. Kung mali ang aming hakbang na ginawa

1899

para sa kanila ay sabihin nila sa amin kung mali at kung kami'y walang

1900

katwiran, wala kaming karapatan para magreklamo, e sabihin nila sa amin ng

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...242424

1901

maayos. At pangalawa, hindi ko matanggap yung ginawa nilang pamamaraan

1902

para lamang mapatigil, ang aming petisyonay sa ganoong paraan nila

1903

gagawin. Na napakarumi para sa akin. 'Di ko kaya talagang tanggapin kasi

1904

galit ako sa drugs. Sa simula't sapol na-- galit ako talaga diyan, 'di ko alam

1905

kung bakit.

1906

R:

Oho.

1907

I:

Talagang yan yata ang bisyona pinandidirihan ko sa lahat. Yang drugs.

1908

R:

Ito po'y nakakasira ng buhay talaga.

1909

I:

Oo, talagang...

1910

R:

Walang kaduda-duda.

1911

I:

Talagang galit ako diyan sa bisyo na yan. Sabi ko nga e, maging lasinggero ka

1912

na, maging ano ka na, 'wag lang yan. Yan lang talaga ang pinaka-- Isa pa, ako

1913

kasi yung tao na, [ma]prinsipyo. Yung 'pag alam kong mali, mali. 'Pag alam ko

1914

namang may katwiran ka at mali ako, bakit naman 'di ko tatanggapin? Yun,

1915

yun ang ikinagalit ko. Galit, galit talaga ako sa kanila. Galit talaga ako.

1916

R:

Oho.

1917

I:

Kasi, sabi ko nga pwede namang pag-usapan ng maayos. Siguro, kaya lang sila

1918

nagagalit sa amin kasi isang mahirap lang kami na hindi tumatanggap ng

1919

gusto nilang mangyari. Yun lang siguro ang ikinagagalit nila sa amin. 'Di nila

1920

kayang tanggapin na sa isang banda ay tama kami.

1921

R:

Ang ganda nun.

1922

I:

Oo. Sa isang banda ay tama kami. At tama yung ipinaglalaban at karapatan

1923

namin kaya siguro kahit anong tawag na, tawag namin sa kanila o sa isang

1924

venue na pampubliko, hindi sila nadating. Ilang beses kami umakyat ng

1925

Munisipyo, 'di nila kami kinakausap.'Di nila kami hinaharap. Na siya mismo

1926

ang inerereklamo ko, hindi siya naharap sa amin para makipagusap. Hindi na

1927

namin problema yun. Kung siya mismo ay ano-- Bakit? Ang tanong, bakit

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang..252525

1928

ayaw niyang makipagusap sa amin? Kung totoo man yung ibinibintang

1929

niya, sabi nga niya may husgado. E kung may husgado, totoo yun, sa husgado

1930

na natin pagusapan. Kaya lang ang paguusapan natin yung lugar, dahil ako'y

1931

idine-- ipinade-demolish mo, idini-demolish mo ko. Yun lang ang gusto kong

1932

tanungin sa kanya, kung saka-sakali. Kasi, yun lang din naman ang tanging

1933

paraan para malaman ko rin kung anong isasagot niya e.

1934

R:

Oho.

1935

I:

Kasi lahat ng patawag ng ahensya ng gobyerno, hindi siya nadating. Kahit isa

1936

sa mga tao niya wala. Hanggang ngayon, kahit kapitan, wala ring maisagot sa

1937

akin. Kung totoo bang may programa ang gobyerno para dito sa amin sa

1938

creek? E ang sasabihin ng kapitan, "Kahit ako, 'di ko alam ang batas diyan e."

1939

Tama ba yun? Kaya sabi ko "Paano ako maniniwala sa sasabihin niyo, kahit

1940

kayo 'di niyo alam ang batas?" So ang pinanghahawakan ko lang ang sinabi ni

1941

Mayor at Vice Gov na ngayon, na walang makapagpapaalis sa inyo diyan

1942

kundi gobyerno. So ang tanong ko sa inyo, may proyekto ba ang gobyerno

1943

para sa amin? Yun ang tanong na hindi nila kayang sagutin ng tuwid. At kung

1944

meron mang proyekto ay sapat ba para mabuhay ang taong tatanggalin niyo

1945

dito dun sa paglilipatan ninyo? Yun lang naman, dalawang katanungan na

1946

hindi nila kayang sagutin. Yun.

1947

R:

Sinubukan niyo ho bang lumapit uli' kay Vice Governor Cesar Salvi?

1948

I:

Hindi.

1949

R:

Oho. May plano ho ba kayong gawin yun?

1950

I:

Sa panahong ngayon, wala. Kasi naipaabot na sa akin ng Kasangga na

1951

sinubukan na nilang lumapit doon. At ang unang sagot ay 'wag daw makialam

1952

ang Kasangga, pabayaan kami, at 'wag daw makisawsaw sa usaping ganito.

1953

R:

Oho.

1954

I:

'Di ko alam kung bakit ganun ang sagot niya.

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...262626

1955

R:

Oho.

1956

I:

Pina--ah Siya din, naniniwala din siya na si Placido ay totoong ganun ang
trabaho.

1957
1958

R:

Oho. Paano niyo po nasabi yun Tita?

1959

I:

Dahil sinabi niya nasa ano e, sinabi niya ang, ang nakarinig kasi yung. Ah 'di,
sinabi niya kay Pot.

1960
1961

R:

Sino po si Pot?

1962

I:

Secretary General ng Kasangga, ng Kasangga. Yun ang nakipagusap sa kanya.

1963

Na ganun nga daw, ganyan-ganyan. So ang sabi ko nga, kung siya'y

1964

naniniwala ng ganun, e nasa sa kanya yun. E hindi naman, hindi namin

1965

kailangan i-justify sa kanya kung anong meron kami dahil hindi naman siya

1966

nakikialam sa buhay namin. Hindi naman siya-- Bagama't siya'y ninong

1967

namin sa kasal, e hindi niya kami inusisa.

1968

R:

Oho.

1969

I:

'Di niya kami pinakialamanan ng personal.

1970

R:

Oho.

1971

I:

Nagalit talaga siya kay Placido noon. At yun ang inaasahan kong isasagot niya

1972

dahil sa galit niya kay Placido, pinatawag niya si Placido noon e, sa

1973

Munisipyo. 'Di pa siya nababang Mayor.

1974

R:

Bakit po siya nagalit kay Placido?

1975

I:

Dahil pinatitigil niya si Placido sa pagli-leader leader dito tungkol sa petition

1976

dito sa creek. Na in-offeran si Placido na "Placido ah..." Nagpadala siya ng

1977

mercenary e. Nagkataon namang best friend ni Ricahard yung head ng DSWD,

1978

si Minda Madrigal. Na sabi niya "Placido, pinapatawag ka ng ninong mo sa

1979

Munisipyo. Pag-usapan niyo yan at tigilan mo yang pagli-leader leader mo

1980

dito.Kung anong gusto mo, pag-usapan ninyo. Ano bang gusto mo?" Sabing

1981

ganun. Sabi ni Placido "Kung anong gusto ko, gusto ko ibigay sa lahat. Kung

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...272727

1982

ano man ang iooffer nila sa akin, ibigay sa lahat. At kung kausapin nila ako,

1983

kausapin lahat, 'di ako lang.Dahil lahat, pare-pareho naman kaming

1984

mawawalan ng bahay, maii-squat. Hindi pwedeng ako lang ang bibigyan nila.

1985

R:

Meron po bang naganap na pago-offer?

1986

I:

Oo, ganun sa... ganung ano e-- "Kung ano ang gusto mo pagusapan ninyo ng
ninong mo."

1987
1988

R:

So ang nag-offer po ay si dating Mayor Salvi?

1989

I:

Oo.

1990

R:

Kay Sir Placido Katimbang...

1991

I:

Makipag-usap lang sa kanya. Pumunta sa Munisipyo.

1992

R:

So may amount po ba na napag-usapan?

1993

I:

Wala.

1994

R:

Wala, oho.

1995

I:

Walang amount...

1996

R:

Hindi po kasi tumuloy...

1997

I:

Hindi nagpunta si Placido sa Munisipyo. Ang gusto niya ay mag-usap sila,

1998

kami, lahatan.Patawag niya kami lahatan. Ang sabi ni Placido, "Kung ako lang

1999

ipatatawag niya, hindi ako pupunta. Lahat kami."

2000

R:

Salvi ukol dun sa issue?

2001
2002

Bakit po ba si Sir Placido lang po ang pinapatawag ni Mayor--ni former Mayor

I:

Kasi ang alam niya talaga, si Placido ang petitioner. Ang alam niya ay siya

2003

talaga ang naghain ng kaso doon. Representative. Kaya, ganun naman yun e,

2004

kung sino yung leader, yun ang unang kinakausap.

2005

R:

At ayaw po yun ni Sir Placido po dahil hindi fair?

2006

I:

Oo. Sa tingin niya hindi fair.

2007

R:

Opo.

2008

I:

Kasi hindi lang naman kami ang maaapektuhan, lahat. Uunahin niya lang

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...282828

2009

kami kasi eto yung pader niya e. Kami lang talaga, e lahat naman ng plano nila

2010

lahat diyan e. Kaya sabi ni Ricahard "Hindi pwede. Gusto ko, 'pag kami'y ano

2011

e, bibigyan ng maganda, e lahat kami." Yun.

2012

R:

Oho.

2013

I:

Yun ang gusto niyang mangyari.

2014

R:

Oho.

2015

I:

Sabi niya, "Kung hindi lang din mangyayari yun, 'wag na kaming mag-usap."
Yun.

2016
2017

R:

Ah Tita, ayon po sa aking research, si Sir Placido Katimbang po ay local

coordinator ng Kasangga? Dito po sa Sitio Basi po o sa La Merced?

2018
2019

I:

Sitio Basi.

2020

R:

Sitio Basi. Oho. Paano po Tita pag may magsabi na "Ay kaya naman lumalaban

2021

yang si Ri--, si Placido Katimbang dahil myembro ng Kasangga at ang

2022

Kasangga ay isang militant group, grupo ng mga aktibista." Paano po kapag

2023

may ganun nasa-- nagsabi.

2024

I:

Actually yan. Kasi si Placido ay wala pang one year na miyembro ng

2025

Kasangga. Nag-umpisa yan ng mage-election. Pinuntahan yan dito, kinuhang

2026

coordinator, na sabi niya, "Sige." Ah nawala na sa ano. Kasi ang alam namin,

2027

'pag election lang, Party List e. Heh heh heh.

2028

R:

Ah...

2029

I:

Oo, yun lang ang alam namin, pero panaka-naka, nabisita sila dito minsan,

2030

ganun. Kinakausap siya. E pagka naman napunta sila dito, hindi kasi ako

2031

naharap. Pagka ganung mga usapin, mister ko lang. Lalo na't puro mga lalaki.

2032

Kaya 'di ko alam ang mga, ni hindi ko alam ang mga programa ng Kasangga.

2033

'Di ko alam ang programa nila, kung anong meron sila. At si Placido naman

2034

kasi hindi nagkekwento sa akin ng mga ganung bagay,

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Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...292929

2035

R:

Ah OK.

2036

I:

Hindi siya nagkekwento. Kaya wala akong kaide-idea na may communication

2037

pa rin siya dun sa mga member. Na hanggang sa huli ay, hindi ko alam na

2038

bago nangyari ang pagkakadakip sa kanya ay one week before, nagtetext na

2039

siya kay Ka Elmer.

2040

R:

Sino po si Ka Elmer?

2041

I:

Siya yung member ng Kasangga. Sa transpo' naman siya naka-angkla.Sabi

2042

niya "Baka, ah, medyo tagilid ako sa laban ko dito." Sabi niyang ganun.

2043

"Medyo delikado ako dahil, hindi ko yata alam na mukhang--" Basta

2044

nararamdaman niya e. Itinext niya kay Ka Elmer na, "Nararamdaman kong

2045

hindi maganda ang mga susunod na mangyayari." Kasi sunod-sunod na yung

2046

mga harassment. Una, pinatigil na yung mga...

2047

R:

2048

I:

Empleyado na [bumili sa inyong] tindahan.

[bumili sa amin.] Oo. Tapos maya't maya, may pumupunta ng

2049

tao dito para inspeksyonin yung creek, bakit daw kami nagrereklamo. Ang--

2050

Hindi pagtatanong e, parang may panghalong pambubuska. "Ano bang

2051

inirereklamo niyo diyan?" Ganun. Ganun ang pagtatanong e galing silang

2052

DPWH.

2053

R:

Oho.

2054

I:

Ganun ang pagtatanong. Kumbaga, bakit kami nagrereklamo?Anong

2055

karapatan namin? Parang ganun ang ang ano nila, ang dating nila. Kaya yun.

2056

Hindi siguro, kasi si Placido ay pwedeng lumaban yan ng wala ang Kasangga

2057

kasi siya yung taong pag-alam niyang tama, tama. Unang una, may experience

2058

siya e. Kasi isa siya dating presidente ng Student Council ng La Merced

2059

Baranggay High School. High school pa lang siya e aktibista na.

2060

R:

Oho.

2061

I:

Nakapagpatalsik na siya ng isang principal at ng isang teacher.

-more197

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...303030

2062

R:

Pero noon po, hindi po siya kabilang sa isang militanteng grupo?

2063

I:

Hindi.

2064

R:

Siya lang po mag-isa ay tumayo?

2065

I:

Oo.

2066

R:

Oho.

2067

I:

Siya lang mag-isa ang tumayo noong mga panahong high school days niya.

2068

R:

Oho, so noon may katapangan na siyang taglay.

2069

I:

Oo, meron na siyang-- talagang may sarili na siyang prinsipyo. Sa morale,

2070

number 1 yun sa ano kasi yun ang naging ground niya kaya napatalsik niya

2071

yung principal ng Barangay noon dahil meroong, meron silang illicit affair ng

2072

isang teacher din.

2073

R:

Oho.

2074

I:

E hindi pwede sa kanya ang ganun kasi mataas ang morale ng ano nun e, ng

2075

teacher e. Hindi kagaya ng ngayon na OK OK lang yun, na itatago ang

2076

estudyante yung ganun. Pero noon iba.Ganun siya ka-ano, kaya yun. Noon pa

2077

lang may idea na siya ng ganun. Kaya yung taglay niyang pagka-leadership

2078

(sic), nasa kanya na yun.

2079

R:

Oho.

2080

I:

Siguro, kahit hindi siya member ng Kasangga...

2081

R:

Oho.

2082

I:

Ganun pa rin ang gagawin niya.

2083

R:

Oho.
Kasi dito lang sa lugar namin e, kaya niyang, kaya niyang magpakilos ng tao.

2084
2085

R:

Oho.

2086

I:

"O, mag-linis tayo."

2087

R:

Oho.

2088

I:

Kahit ayaw ng tao, napapa-oo niya. "Sama tayo." Ganyan ganyan. Napapakilos

-more198

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...313131

2089

niya. Talagang taglay niya yung pagka-leadership (sic), yung may pagka-

2090

command (sic). Dominante.

2091

R:

Oho.

2092

I:

Ganun yung kanyang karakter, kaya siguro kung minsan, naiinis sa kanya ang

2093

ibang tao, nami-misinterpret. Pero kung iisipin mo, tama naman yung

2094

ginagawa niya. Although minsan may iba ang dating, nayayabangan, ganun

2095

ang interpretasyon. Pero kung tutuusin mo na, reasonable naman kung bakit

2096

siya nagkakaganun.

2097

R:

Oho.

2098

I:

At pinaninindigan niya kung ano yung sinimulan niya. Ganun yung karakter
niya.Yan siguro, kahit wala yung Kasangga, ganun pa rin ang gagawin niya.

2099
2100

R:

Opo.

2101

I:

Ang sa amin lang kasi, kaya lang yan nabuhay dahil na, alam ni Nanay Socorro

2102

na wala kaming malalapitan e. Yun. Kaya lang yun na, na, nabuo na ganyan.

2103

Na ako naman e parang masyadong, kumbagang nabuhay ang aking ano kasi,

2104

"Sino ba 'tong mga taong 'to? Hindi ko naman kilala, sinusuportahan kami.

2105

"Bakit kaya ganun?" Ang unang pumasoksa isip ko na "'Di ko kilala, itong

2106

abugado namin 'di ko rin kilala. Basta dinala lang kami doon. O eto magiging

2107

abugado natin, ganyan ganyan. Ito ang mga taong tutulong sayo, lumapit ka

2108

sa ganun, lumapit ka sa ganyan." Hanggang sa lumalaon e kahit paano,

2109

paghingi, nabibigyan ng tulong. Iba, parang magkakapatid ba na 'di mo

2110

naman kaanu-ano.

2111

R:

Oho.

2112

I:

Ganun ang pakiramdam ko sa kanila.

2113

R:

Tita sa tingin niyo ba sa sitwasyong ito, may opresyon na nagaganap o pangaagrabyado? O wala? At kung oo o hindi, bakit po?

2114
2115

I:

Oo, malaki ang opresyon na ginagawa nila sa amin. Unang pangaagrabyado

-more199

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...323232

2116

na yung ikulong mo yung walang kasalanan sa ganung pamamaraan.

2117

Pangalawa, pangaagrabyado, patayin mo ang ikinabubuhay ng isang tao.Para

2118

mo na ring isang pamilya ang pinatay mo nun e. Lalo't, lalo't higit sa akin, na

2119

nag-iisa akong nag-aalaga ng nanay ko, wala akong kaalalay na masasabihan

2120

mo na may anak akong mapapag-iwanan ko sa nanay ko, may asawa akong

2121

inaasikaso, iniintindi ko pa ikabubuhay namin. Na ang linggo-linggo naman

2122

doon sa pagtuloy ni Placido ay may bayad din, at meron ding sakit na linggo-

2123

linggo rin ay binibilhan ko rin ng gamot. Na napakalaking-- Kung sa

2124

pangaagrabyado ay wala ng-- magkabilang balikat na ang ibinigay nila sa

2125

akin. Kaya sabi ko nga noon kay Kapitan, "Kapitan patayin niyo na lang kaya

2126

kami. Kasi pinakulong niyo na yung asawa ko, tatanggalan niyo pa ko ng

2127

bahay, ay patayin niyo na lang kami." Sabi ko "Kasi lahat na tinanggal niyo e.

2128

Ano pang gusto niyong matira sa amin?" Sabikong ganun. Wala siyang

2129

maisagot sa amin. Kaya sabi ko, sa panggigipit, lahat ginawa niyo na pero

2130

patuloy pa rin akong lumalaban, kahit pagapang. Ginagaodko yung

2131

kabuhayan namin. Pinipilit kong mapagaan yung kalooban ko kasi hindi rin

2132

naman namin alam kung hanggang kelan tatagal yung kasong yan e.

2133

R:

Oho.

2134

I:

Siguro ay God's Will na rin kung kelan mareresulba 'tong kasong 'to pero

2135

pinagdadasal ko talaga sana matapos na ito ngayong taon na ito. Talagang isa

2136

rin yung nakakulong, nag-collapse na yun dun sa loob e.

2137

R:

Si, si Sir Placido po?

2138

I:

Si Placido, kasi may sakit yan na high blood. Nag 180/130 ang dugo niya.

2139

R:

Oho.

2140

I:

Kaya yung init, sikip, yung ventilation hindi maganda. Hindi naa-arawan ang

2141

nakakulong, walang exercise. Isa yun sa nagti-trigger dun sa sakit niya na,

2142

meron pa yang inner na sakit na hindi namin inilalabas kasi kahit anong oras

-more200

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...333333

pwede siyang mamatay e.

2143
2144

R:

Oho.

2145

I:

Meron siyang ano sa loob ng katawan niya. Syndrome yung kanya umano, na

2146

once ma-trigger yun, automatic, ganun pwede na siyang bumigay. Kaya yun

2147

ang inaano kona sana makalabas na siya ngayon.

2148

R:

Opo.

2149

I:

Kasi lalo siyang lumalaki. E kahit kaunti lang yung kain niya, 'pag wala kang

2150

exercise, talagang lalaki ka. Lalot ganun na high blood, nirarayuma, marami

2151

ng nararamdaman. Kaya nga sabi ko sa kanya tiis-tiis. Gusto na niya

2152

magpalipat sa Sta. Cruz kasi nahihirapan na nga siya diyan. Ayaw naman ni

2153

Attorney. Sabi niya "Mahihirapan tayo." Kasi maghihiwalay yung dalawa e

2154

napakahirap magkahiwalay yung magka-etalsa kaso. E sabi ko "Placido

2155

magtiis-tiis ka na, baka naman ngayon na 'toe, taon na to e... Pero sabi ni

2156

Attorney, sabi ko kasi " Ano kaya Attorney? Makalabas kaya yung dalawa

2157

ngayong taong eto? Sabi niya "Oo naman." Yun ang sagot sa akin, "Oo naman."

2158

So doon pa lang nabubuhayan na ako ng loob kaya sabi ko magtiis na muna

2159

siya. Siguro ngayong hearing namin ng February 20, malalaman na namin

2160

yung mga resulta. Actually sa amin nga sila natuto e, yung mga kapulisan e.

2161

Kasi ngayon, 'pag nanghuhuli na sila ng buy-bust operation may kasama na

2162

silang PDEA, may kasama na silang Barangay, may kasama na silang media.

2163

May kasama na silang mga totoong mga pulis, heh heh, totoong mga kasali

2164

talaga sa operation. E kasi yung akin lang naman e, alam ko talaga trinabaho

2165

lang talaga yung dalawa. Yun lang talaga ang dahilan. At kahit siguro ako e

2166

mamatay, mabuhay, yun pa rin ang paniniwalaan ko. Tsaka hindi pwedeng

2167

mangyari na si Placido maging drug pusher dahil apat na taon siyang wala

2168

dito. Pabalik-balik lang yan sa Davao. Magtagal man siya dito sa amin, mga

2169

isang buwan, dalawang buwan, aalis na uli'. Punta na uli ng Davao. Kaya dun

-more201

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...343434

2170

ako galit na galit. Sabi ko, hindi nila inaral mabuti yung taong ipahuhuli nila.

2171

Hindi nila talaga sinubaybayan ang buhay. Kaya 'di ako naniniwala-- Kaya

2172

sabi ko nga, bawat salita, bawat pagsisinungaling nila, may maipapangtapat

2173

kami, may ebidensya pa. Sabi ko, kung kaya nilang sabihin na si Placido ay

2174

yun ang ikinabubuhay namin, nagkakamali sila, nagkakamali sila,dahil saksi

2175

ang mga utang, Heh heh heh heh heh.

2176

R:

Hehe heh. Oho.

2177

I:

Saksi ang paglubog namin sa kabuhayan kung bakit ano. Sabi ko, ang alam ko
sa mga ganyang big time pusher naku, hindimagtitiis sa ganito.

2178
2179

R:

Oho.

2180

I:

Na mga, ano yang mga yan high profile.

2181

R:

Oho.

2182

I:

E kami naman, eto lang kami. Tsaka para't ano kami makipagtigasan kung

2183

yun ang ikinabubuhay namin diba? Aalis na lang kami kasi kaya naman

2184

naming umupa ng magandang bahay o tumira sa ano. Hindi para sumiksik

2185

dito sa squatter kung yun talaga ang aming ikinabubuhay. Kasi pinanini--

2186

Pinangaanuhan nila e, pinaninindigan nilang big time pusher ang mister ko e.

2187

E 'pag talagang big time, aba! Ibang klase na yun, ang alam ko ibang ano na

2188

ayun. E, ako hindi pa rin naniniwala na ang La Merced ay kuta ng mga pusher

2189

at drug addict, hindi ako naniniwala. Sa lahat ng nakakulong sa bilangguan,

2190

iisa ang kaso, puro drug pushing. Ay wala ng user? Puro pusher na yung nasa

2191

loob. Sabi ko, 'di ako naniniwala. Totoo talagang 'di lahat ng nakakulong may

2192

kasalanan. Kundi biktima lang sila ng maling pagkakataon.Maling mga

2193

biktima. Siguro, mangilan-ngilan, meron naman talagang totoo, na talagang

2194

gumagamit. Gumagamit as in user, pero hindi para pusher. Na si-- na 'pag

2195

kami'y nagkwekwentuhan doon, umaamin naman sila na "Oo, user lang kami

2196

pero hindi kami nagpu-push." Sabing ganun. Sabi ko'y "Kayo lang nakakaalam

-more202

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...353535

2197

niyan sa sarili niyo. 'Di naman para ano, 'di naman para i-ano niyo sa

2198

akinkung-- Basta't kung ano yung sinasabi niyo, wala kayong patutunayan sa

2199

akin."

2200

R:

Oho.

2201

Sabi kong ganun. Kasi -- E kami hindikami, hindi kami naghuhusga sa inyo,

2202

kung ano kayo. Ang alam ko kasi sa mga ano, mga biktima. Mga biktima sila.

2203

Lalo dun, may bata doon na nakakulong na. Siguro yun ay setup din lang.

2204

Dancer siya e. Setup din, binugbog, tinding torture ang inabot. Yun, sinabi

2205

daw sa kanya siya daw ay pusher. Wala ring piyansa. Setup din. Siguro siya ay

2206

nagamit.Oo, inamin naman niya kasi nag-positive siya sa drug test.

2207

R:

OK.

2208

Pero hindi daw para siya ay magbenta. Siya daw ay nagamit, bigay-bigay daw

2209

ng mga barkada, kumbaga mga ganun, barkadahan. Yun. Nasira na talaga ang

2210

buhay. Magandang-- Nag-aaral e. 20 years old.

2211

R:

Wow.

2212

I:

Yun. Nasira ang buhay nila ng ganun ganun lang. Sabi ko talagang ang lupit ng

2213

batas nila. Hindi nila binibigyan ng pagkakataon na, ng isang pagkakataon

2214

ang tao, kakasuhan agad nila ng Section 5? Pwede naman nilang

2215

ikulong.Ikukulong, batang-bata pa.Pwede nilang ikulong.Anuhan nilang

2216

magbago. Bigyan nila ng pagkakataon na makapagsisi, magbago. "Huwag lang

2217

naman yung walang piyansa na halos wala ng laban ang bata. E kahit hindi

2218

ako magulang, napakasakit.

2219

R:

Oho.

2220

I:

Diba? Nakakwentuhan ko yang mga magulang naiyak, hirap na hirap. Sabi ko

2221

e ako nga lang, asawa ko nga lang yan e, masyado na ang sama ng loob ko,

2222

paano pa kaya ina, diba? E ina yun.'Di mo matatawaran ang paghihirap nun.

2223

Kaya sabi ko "'Nay, ipagdasal na lang natin,'Nay." Sabi ko, "Hindi naman

-more203

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...363636

2224

nagwawagi ang mga ano-- Alam naman ng Diyos yung totoo. Siguro ay may

2225

dahilan kung bakit nangyari yun. At meron ding malaking aral sa'tin 'pag

2226

nalampasan natin lahat 'to." Sabi kong ganun. "Malalampasan din natin yan,

2227

'wag lang tayo magsasawang manalangin. Humingi ng awa."

2228

R:

Dun dito sa-- So nasabi niyo nga na merong opresyon o pangaagrabyadong

2229

nagaganap. Syempre dun sa interview ko sa inyo simula pa kanina no? Alam

2230

naman natin, alam na natin kung sino yung nangaagrabyado at inaagrabyado,

2231

pero ulitin natin Tita, banggitin natin ng mas malinaw. Kung meron talagang

2232

pangaagrabyadong nangyari, merong nangaagrabyado at merong

2233

naaagrabyado.Sino po yung mga yun?

2234

I:

Nangaagrabyado?

2235

R:

Sino po yung naaagrabyado at nangaagrabyado?

2236

I:

Siguro palibasa ngayon lang kami nakaranas ng naagrabyado kami, ay isa

2237

lang naman ang maituturing kong nangagrabyado sa amin, yan yung

2238

pamilyang Gorospe ngayon na-- Yun lang naman kasi ang alam namin na ang

2239

tanging dahilan at tanging may motibo para kami ganituhin dahil ilang

2240

dekada-- Ilang dekada ba? Nanungkulan magmula kay Salvi o magmula kung

2241

ilan pang mayor ng La Merced ay 'di namin naranasan yung ganito na

2242

panggigipit. At sila lang naman kasi ang may proyekto sa lugar na 'to para

2243

magkaroon ng dahilan kung bakit kami dapat, dapat i-harass ng ganito

2244

katindi. At kami naman ang naaagrabyado, kaming mga residente dito sa Sitio

2245

Basi. Dahil kung matutuloy nga at sila e mananalo sa pagde-demolish na

2246

balak dito sa lugar namin, kami ang unang unang agrabyado talaga. Hindi na

2247

lalayo. Ditolang sa malapit. Yun lang. Sila lang talaga ang...

2248

R:

Kung ganun po, bakit po sila nangaagrabyado?

2249

I:

Sa...

-more204

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...373737

2250

R:

Bakit kaya sila nangaagrabyado po?

2251

I:

Siguro, ah unang una, gusto nilang makuha 'tong lugar namin. Kasi para

2252

lumaki yung lugar nila. Yun lang ang alam ko kung bakit sila nangaagrabyado.

2253

O nasaktan, naging personal na lang ang galit nila, dahil nga sa katigasan ng

2254

ulo ng mister ko na ilang beses na nilang pinatawag e hindi nasipot at ang

2255

gusto lang naman mangyari ay sa proper venue mag, mag-usap kung ano man

2256

angpaguusapan, yun lang naman. At yung proper venue na 'yun ay hindi lang

2257

mister ko ang nagdesisyon kundi lahat ng residente dito ng Sitio Basi, ng mga

2258

taga-creek. Nakung tayo'y mag-uusap ay dun na lang tayo sa Barangay Hall.

2259

Hindi yun desisyon ng mister ko. Yun ay isinangguni niya rin sa mga tao. At

2260

ang mister ko, hindi pwedeng magdesisyon ng walang alam ang mga tao dahil

2261

kung yun ang gagawin niya e sana e sa pangsarili na lang namin kami-- Para

2262

kami'y makinabang ng sarili, ganun. Lagi niyang ini-- kinokonsidera ang

2263

ibang tao.

2264

R:

Tita, paano kayo naba-- nabago po ba kayo ng karanasan ito?

2265

I:

Ay malaki. Malaki ang nabago sa akin. Ang dating ano lang, bahay palengke

2266

lang ngayon biglang 360 ang ikot. Heh heh heh. Biglang umikot ng 'di ko

2267

inaasahan. Madami akong taong nakasalamuha, na'di ko akalaing makikilala

2268

ko. Marami akong lugar na napuntahan na hindi ko akalain na pupuntahan

2269

ko. At marami rin akong takot na nalalampasan na, na hindi ko akalain

2270

kakayanin ko. Marami rin akong problema na minsan ay gusto ko ng

2271

bumigay, lalo na ng maospital ang nanay ko, halos kalahating buwan sa

2272

ospital, walang pambayad. naikwento ko na yata yun sayo.

2273

R:

Oho.

2274

I:

Na talagang maraming nabago. At malaki ang naituro sa akin nitong

2275

pangyayaring ito. Sa batas, sa uri ng batas natin pag ika'y mahirap at

2276

mayaman.Sa karapatan. Marami akong nalaman, natutunan. Na ang mahirap

-more205

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...383838

2277
2278

ay, kailangan matutunan mo unang una, 'pag ika'y mahirap, ang karapatan

2279

mo. Kung anong meron ka dahil wala ka na ngang pera, 'di mo pa alam ang

2280

karapatan mo. Mas lalo ka ng kawawa. Siguro kung nung una, nung kami e

2281

madakip, padampot, siguro nung una kung alam ko lamang ang karapatan ko,

2282

siguro 'di nila madadala basta basta ng ganun yung mister ko. At kung yung

2283

mga tao sa amin a

2284

basta

2285

mangyayari ang mga yun. Yun ang nakapagpabago sa akin na talagang mas

2286

lalo akong tumibay. Mas lalo akong naniniwala sa karapatang pantao. Yun

2287

lang ang alam ko. Sabi ko nga, 'di ko naman sinasabi na pang mahirap lang

2288

ang karapatang pantao pero kalimitan kasi sa mahihirap, nawawalang ng

2289

hustisya. Hindi nagkakaroon ng hustisya ang mga mahihirap. Pero hindi ako

2290

naniniwala dun. Gusto kong patunayan yun.

y alam din ang mga bagay na yun,'di rin siguro basta

2291

R:

Oho.

2292

I:

Na angmahi-- kahit mahirap ka, magkakaron ka ng hustisya, lalo't totoo

naman yung ipinaglalaban mo e. Naniniwala ako dun. Gustoko patunayan.

2293
2294

R:

Sitio Basi?

2295
2296

Paano niyo tinitignan ang hinaharap? Para sa iyo? Para sa pamilya? Parasa

I:

Sa hinaharap, siguro tinitignanko 'to ng, ng masaya. Tinatanawko na

2297

matatapos ko na, matatapos na namin ang pagsubok na 'to. Gusto kong

2298

makalabas na yung dalawa. Actually yan ang wish ko ngayong New Year.

2299

[Heh heh heh]

2300

R:

[Heh heh heh]

2301

I:

Yun lang. Marami na akong wish na natutupad.

2302

R:

Wow. Praise God.

2303

I:

Dalawa na lang ang hindi pa.

2304

R:

Wow.

2305

I:

Yun na lang ang iniintay ko. At tapos ah, yung 'wag na kaming mapaalis dito.
-more206

Full Interview with Mrs. Katimbang...393939

2306

R:

Oho.

2307

I:

Pero, kung ako ang masusunod, sa totoo lang, sabi nga "ingatan ang buhay at

2308

ika'y iingtan," 'Di ko na rin siguro ititigil dito si Placido, kung halimbawang

2309

makalabas siya. Kasi eto lang e. Ang taong nasaktan ang pride, habang

2310

nakikita mo yang taong yan e magpapaalala ng "Itong kutong-lupang ito e, eto

2311

lang naman e nagpahiya sa akin."

2312

R:

Oho.

2313

Siguro ay 'di kayang tanggapin ng isang mayamang tao yun. Makikita pa

2314

yung-- Siguro hahanap siguro kami ng ibang lugar na-- Hindi naman sa

2315

iiwanan ko itong Basi na ipinaglaban namin, kundi lilipat muna kami siguro

2316

ng lugar na medyo makakahinga-hinga si Placido ng maganda-ganda. Babalik

2317

din kami dito, siguro 'di sa ngayon. Sabi nga, magpapalamig muna kung

2318

sakaling makalabas yung dalawa. Kasi alam naman natin ang reyalidad, 'di

2319

naman yan titigilan ng ganun-ganun lang.

2320

R:

Oho.

2321

I:

Yan ang reyalidad sa buhay ngayon. Kaya makalabas lang yung dalawa, 'wag

2322

silang mag-alala. Hindi naman lahat ng oras, ang pina-- Pinagpe-pray ko rin

2323

sila e,na sila e magising din e, sa ginagawa nila. Na isang araw e "Ay tigilan na

2324

nga nating yang mga yan at wala rin namang mangyayari. Masisira lang ang

2325

pangalan nila 'pag kami ng kami ng binengga." Kaya sabi ko e sana'y magising

2326

sila. Tapikin sila ng Diyos na mali yung ginagawa nila sa kapwa nila. Yun lang.

2327

R:

Tita Lilia Katimbang, maraming salamat po! Napakalaking tulong, Tita.

2328

I:

Salamat.

-end-

207