Philippines: The Illusion of Unity in a Nation

Bayanihan sa Bukid by Carlos "Botong" Francisco

Let me be frank, has there ever been unity in the Philippines? Not just in clusters, I mean the nation as a whole, what moment in the history of the Philippines has national unity been displayed? Some may point to the People Power or EDSA Revolutions of 1986 and 2001, but I don't see how those can be categorized as symbols of national unity. I say that because I don't think that those are representative of every people group in the Philippines. I wasn't there, but based on pictures and stories, it doesn't seem to depict national unity at all. Furthermore, the nation wasn't at all in agreement or involved in those two events. I'm pretty sure many Ilocanos didn't agree with the deposition of the former Pres. Marcos Sr. And we don't even know if the Visayas or Mindanao provinces had any say in those two civil resistances. I would even dare to say that those two "revolutions" were actually coup d'etats.

Before I start to be branded as an apologist or some other politically derogatory term, I just want to point out that the Philippines has never been united on a national level, when it comes to matters of progress or advancement. There may be cases when efforts are done on a national scale, such as relief operations for victims of calamity. But even in those instances, I wouldn't say that the sentiment reaches a point of national unity. What I'm trying to say is that there are regional or tribal barriers that prevent the Philippines to be united as a nation moving forward to a bright future. And I will try to enumerate some reasons why that is the case.

Regional differences is one. According to the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, there are 134 Philippine languages with one national language. And with each language comes its own set of cultural norms, values, mores, and worldviews. Language barriers can definitely separate one group of people to another because it impedes communication and understanding. Isn't that one of the reasons why the government established one national language? So that it would be easier for one people group to understand another by means of a common language?

However, of course, some would argue that the choice in which language became the national language was a controversial one. Why establish the national language, the majority of which is based on the Tagalog language? I can see why it would breed contempt and dismay in other ethnic groups. Therefore, we have English as another official language, since it is a language from outside the Philippines. But then, there is the issue of accessibility, in that not everyone really completely understands English. That's because education, especially in the remote parts of the country, is difficult to access. So, I think that's one of the reasons why unity is hampered.

A second reason is tied to the first, geographical disparity. Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao are the three major islands of the Philippines. But it takes too much time and money to get from one to the other. Mass media and communication sort of rectified that a bit, but not completely. It only ensured that information would be accessible at a faster pace. Today, social media has virtually reduced the time difference to zero, but then it has its own issues of misinformation. It's difficult to bring people together when they are miles apart. Furthermore, information seems to flow unilaterally, that is, in a single direction. At the very least, in the case of national news, the source is centered only around the capital which then transmits this information everywhere else, where it can reach. Only bits and pieces of news gets reported in other regions. It gets filtered obviously, and only those which has been filtered and approved will get broadcasted.

Progress and advancement also seems to be centered only around the capital, if not some of the major cities in the three big islands i.e. Cebu and Davao. Meanwhile, each province exists as a bubble with one major power controlling all interests within the province or region. And depending on their political inclination, they might receive some support from the central government. Otherwise, there are means and devices by which budgets and funding can be diverted.

Finally, the third reason that explains the lack of unity in the Philippines as a nation is its history. Earlier Philippine societies were tribal in nature, but there was never a balance of power that required stabilization. What I mean is, each one of the tribes or barangays, or societies that existed in the Philippines were only concerned about their own community. If they had to interact or communicate with another community, it would probably have been for barter. There was no central government administering tasks or overseeing the needs of other communities. Everybody was self-sufficient in their own communities. That whole system was disrupted when the Spaniards colonized the Philippines. More than that, they imposed their social structures onto the native way of life which drastically altered the socioeconomic system of the Philippine natives. It changed the culture and the value system, the attitudes, the norms, the behaviors, and the worldview of the natives.

Until now, that persists and it has been superimposed with other systems. It has made the Philippines a hodge-podge of mindsets and cultures. Instead of progressing naturally and internally, the external factors of colonialism accelerated the process to the people's detriment. The Philippines is only united on a superficial level, in that we can call ourselves Filipinos. We can rally behind our athletes who win awards, medals, and trophies, and in so doing, bring honor to Filipinos. But, deep down inside, within the culture of the Philippines, there has only been strife, tension, discord, or a sense of indifference toward others. That has been further aggravated by the pressures of life and poverty, which I believe was exacerbated by or had originated from the 350 years of being colonized by different imperialists.

So, how do we become united as a nation? I think we need to recognize the differences between different groups in the Philippines, and celebrate that. We need to start to understand each other and the needs of other people groups in the Philippines. We need to try and connect with the different peoples who exist and live in the nation. There has to be a singular goal that the nation as a whole will try to achieve, and we need to involve and engage everybody with this goal. Progress needs to be initiated in the different regions, that is, we should not focus all our time, money, and effort in the capital or in the major cities. It needs to be dispersed. I know it's a far-fetched dream but I really do think it's possible. It's an ambition, and if only people were able to share that vision and ambition, then I think there is a chance that the Philippines can finally climb out of the muck it's been stuck in for the past 500 years.