Norms of Non-Involvement

Much has been said with the case of two missing UP Diliman students, Karen Empeño and Sherlyn Cadapan. One might wonder why I’m suddenly more than concerned with this issue, considering I have never been affiliated with any activist, peasant or labour organisation. In UP, we’ve heard so many stories of activists with pronounced leftists leanings gunned down or abducted and never found again. Then, as soon as the posters around the campus get plastered over by Jag and Lee sale flyers, life goes on – back to Leithold, Samuelson and Ritzer as if nothing happened.

I’m particularly disturbed with this issue because Karen is my batchmate in BA Sociology. One of our classes, Qualitative Sociology, required us to go on field most of the time. One of my biggest embarrassments as a sociologist is my fear of exploring research topics that are “too immersed” in the field. I don’t think Karen had such fears. She selected uncommodifiable research topics that gave voice to those who are marginalised. She has not completed her BA degree yet because she chose to volunteer for a farmers’ movement in Central Luzon.

Then here lies numerous versions of what happened to her. Some said she was abducted by armed [military] men in Bulacan and was never seen since then. Others say this happened to her because she’s part of the NPA. More disturbingly, some say she got killed in crossfire in Isabela. Clearly, I’m not in the position to verify any of these reports. I am in the position though to get pissed when people say she deserved it because she chose to be there. This comment is tantamount to saying that the government’s all-out offensive against non-state actors is legitimate. Even unarmed civilians can be considered as targets. I understand that this statement is very much subject to debate. However, what is not subject to debate is the importance of knowing what really happened to her. Although I’m a believer of “what is true is what works”, I’d hate to see this issue vulgarised and used for propaganda Karen would not have approved of.

A lot of us tend to be desensitised with these issues. Sadly, we are desensitised for the wrong reason. We stop caring because we think it's futile – might as well be preoccupied with our little issues because at least, dealing with them produces tangible results. But hey, how many times did we passionately engage in a petty argument and say “This is not just about this. It’s about what it represents.” Oftentimes, we don’t understand people who defy norms of non-involvement and fight for intangible causes like justice and legitimacy. Little does it register to us that we do this everyday, it’s just that some people choose to take this battle to the next level, get dismissed in the mainstream and unfortunately, violently fade away in the background.


See
http://www.tigilpaslang.blogspot.com/
http://tigilpaslang2.blogspot.com/
http://www.upd.edu.ph/%7Eupdinfo/