ARE WE REALLY TURNING A NEW LEAF?

"A use of force continuum is a standard that provides law enforcement officers and civilians with guidelines as to how much force may be used against a resisting subject in a given situation."

Do we have rules of engagement at all?

The spate of killings by police of drug suspects, drug pushers, etcetera, has led me to ask, what are the rules of engagement used by our police force when confronting offenders?

How much force should be used against them -- a young as against an adult offender?

When a suspect uses a handgun, should he/she be shot at right away? Is there not a way by which these people may be immobilized without getting killed?

At rallies, the police use tear gas. There are also instances they have used rubber bullets. In Europe, I have read that they could render a rallyist paralyzed for sometime without getting hurt, the legs unable to move. 

For example, that policeman who shot the Hong Kong tourists in a hostage taking drama, could have been immobilized right away as the SWAT soldiers could see him with a telescope on their armalites. They could have shot his hand, or shot him with rubber bullets. 

Shouldn't the police study those methods so as to minimize if not stop the violence outright?

Life seems so cheap nowadays and I would not wonder if that military reservist had gone beyond decency so as to kill a person over a trivial conflict on the road. The series of killings in headlines in print, radio and TV makes life so easy to do away with. 

However, some thinkers have posited the idea that people who feel secure with the support of their families and their communities are not bound to use drugs at all. They rise above the mundane and pursue goals that would enhance their skills and talents. However, since the 70's our Philippine social life has largely been insecure -- fro the time martial law was declared until we handed over our life to a former homemaker who helped restore our democratic rights, to a military man, to a movie artist-turned politician, and later our elections were manipulated to retain the entry of a woman president. In 2010, we hoped that a relative of the homemaker-President would give us good governance, but instead we have a full-scale illegal drugs industry from north to south and the menace is so grave that strong  arm tactics have to be used to stop it. The people realize that it wreaks havoc on our inner souls and so their choice  is now the present regime -- we are run by people of Mindanao -- the Presidency, the Senate and the House of Representatives, including the Philippine National Police. 
Yes we see now that our government is results oriented and that is real change. We can feel the changes occurring day by day. 

However the changes must include socio-cultural programs -- those that will strengthen the feelings of people that we are part of that one big, big organization in the Philippines and that there are no elite or special people who get privileges denied others. Strengthening of our cultural departments and agencies is very much needed now. 

I remember in 1996, when I presented my show, Himig Bayi at the Open Air Auditorium in Luneta, containing 12 self-composed songs, sang by Beth Lorenzana, Deeda Barretto, Rica and Lani Misalucha, the NPDC had a complete video equipment to record the event. And I was able to get a copy of the show, edited by Gie and Morris. But now, nothing. Recording is done by relatives. NPDC budget for the shows have been cut back and yet through all these years we know that millions of pesos have been pocketed in the name of the PDAF. 

However, I am not saying that we should stop the attacks against the drug lords and the like. I like our so-called  "turning a new leaf." However, I would like the rules of engagement to be more humane, more caring of people's lives. I want more people to live longer, to realize their mistakes and then turn a new leaf as their second lives matter most. Who knows if they would turn out to be a Picasso painter, an Abdulmari Imao sculptor par excellence, a Nureyevsky or Lisa Macuja ballet dancer, or a Placido Domingo tenor later on? We'll never know unless we give them a second chance. After all, we are  just humans and could commit mistakes sometime in our life. Sure life is short but let us not make it shorter for other people.  



Painting: Guernica by Picasso