Pubdate: Tue, 02 Aug 2016
Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer (Philippines)
Column: At Large
Copyright: 2016 Philippine Daily Inquirer
Contact:  http://www.inquirer.net/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1073
Author: Rina Jimenez-David

GIVING THE DRUG WAR A 'FACE'

PERHAPS WHAT so turned off PDu30 about the front-page INQUIRER photo 
of the body of Michael Siaron cradled in the arms of his weeping 
widow Jennilyn Olayres, which he dismissed as "drama" during his 
State of the Nation Address no less, was that it gave a "face" to his 
war against drugs.

And that is the human face of the Duterte campaign: a grieving widow, 
a slain young man, and a populace that could do nothing but look on 
as police waited for operatives to process the crime scene.

Many times, we consumers of news and media seek refuge in the 
anonymity of the people who make the headlines and the fine print of 
news stories. When news of the "war against drugs" first emerged, we 
were "protected" in a way by not knowing any more details about the 
fatalities of that war beyond the claims of police that they were 
either drug users or pushers, and in a few instances even drug lords 
or marketers.

We may have been shocked or alarmed by the rising numbers, and how 
rapidly the body count was building up, but as long as the victims 
remained nameless and faceless-literally, as some were wrapped in 
trash bags and packing tape-we could take refuge in platitudes and 
hand-wringing.

But what to do with the heart-rending image of Jennilyn tearfully 
embracing the lifeless body of her Michael? What to do with the story 
we were told in the INQUIRER's Sunday edition, that they shared a 
shack amid the floating trash of a clogged estero in Malabon, and 
that photographer Raffy Lerma felt so helpless and hopeless when his 
own journalistic instincts and his duty as a citizen prevented him 
from responding to Jennilyn's cries for help, for fear of 
contaminating the scene of the crime? AS a journalist, I couldn't 
help but be struck by the quality of Lerma's photograph, by the human 
drama of the image, the dramatic lighting, the stark contrast with 
the surrounding darkness. Apparently, others, primarily PDu30 
supporters, lost no time denouncing the powerful image, claiming it 
was nothing but "drawing," or a posed photograph.

And that is why, going beyond a photo caption and a headline, this 
newspaper decided to dive deeper into the life and death of what 
writer Eric Caruncho called "an invisible man."

And with Caruncho's story, and Lerma's account of how he came to take 
that photograph and the feelings he shared with other photo 
journalists after yet another street killing, the mask of anonymity 
that allowed us to dismiss Siaron's death as just another news item, 
has been torn away.

I can't help but wonder, though, just exactly what PDu30's plan was 
when he declared a "war on drugs." Was this what he had in mind: the 
mindless, careless, ceaseless killing of suspects? One would think 
bringing an end to the drug trade should begin and end with going 
after the big fish, the bosses who fund, manage and profit from the 
shabu labs and networks of pushers and drug runners. But already, the 
President has said he would have to order the invasion of "another" 
country to pull up the drug menace by the roots. So in the meantime, 
we'll just wait for the body count to rise, for more Siarons to die, 
and more Jennilyns to mourn?

Where and when (and how) will this madness end? WONG Chu King, an 
immigrant from Amoy, China, couldn't have arrived in the country at a 
worse time. A few years after his arrival, the Philippines was thrown 
into the chaos of World War II, and despite the uncertainty and risks 
of the time, managed to build, with the help of four assistants, a 
small cigarette business, peddling his merchandise in the eskinitas 
(alleys) of Divisoria.

With "liberation," King managed to establish La Campana Fabrica de 
Tabacos, nurturing it into a major business that exists to this day. 
But the vicissitudes of the war left him with a single dream: As a 
sign of his gratitude to God for sparing his life during the war, he 
pledged to do all he could to improve the lives of other war 
survivors. And up to the present, the foundation named after him 
remains dedicated to providing opportunities for others.

Espousing "transformation through charity," the foundation provides 
opportunities for the needy but deserving, "changing the world-and 
doing the impossible-one small step at a time." This it does with the 
help of around 5,000 volunteers, and managed by his surviving family members.

Today, the Wong Chu King Foundation (WCKF) Inc., founded in 1990 by 
his heirs, engages in educational and apostolic charities, many of 
them in areas where tobacco farming, the backbone of the business, is 
common. As an expression of its ties to tobacco farming communities, 
WCKF provides scholarships to deserving young men and women, 
especially to dependents and beneficiaries of tobacco farmers.

Also a major part of WCKF's projects are outreach programs for 
institutions like the Home for the Elderly (formerly Golden Acres) 
and the White Cross Orphanage. On a wider scale, the foundation also 
engages in projects that address problems like health and nutrition, 
youth and family welfare, and disaster relief. While its scholarship 
programs are managed directly by the foundation, other programs are 
carried out by NGOs. Funding for these charitable and development 
programs are sourced from donations and contributions of members of 
the Wong Chu King family and from supporters.

Certainly, King, whose birth is commemorated this week, would be the 
first to approve of and appreciate how his commitment to God and his 
adopted country now lives on through his descendants and his business family.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom