a sympathy... an appeal

After the tragic hostage-taking in Manila yesterday, all fingers are now pointing towards the uniformed men of the Philippine police that handled the botched operation. PNP themselves admitted having committed a few mistakes during the 12-hour drama. Mistakes that resulted to the death of 8 innocent Hongkong tourists.

As a brother or a son, I apologize to the families of the victims and offer my deepest condolences. I can’t imagine how painful it is to lose a family member in such a senseless fashion. I share the grief and even the anger that comes with it. And I know that no amount of consolation can take away the pain these families feel right now.

But with this offering of sympathy comes an appeal.

An appeal to the Hongkong people to understand that I, like many other Filipinos, was also ashamed of the way the situation was handled by a few incompetent policemen whose actions projected a shattered image of the entire Filipino police force for the whole world to see. Though I can assure you that these men are but a few inept officers out of a generally competent law enforcement agency. And that there were other better, more qualified men in uniform who should have handled the situation and could have made a difference in the outcome. But bad luck had it that those officers were given the role that they are so ill-fitted to tackle.

I also felt the frustration you and your Chief Executive felt when it looked like nobody was taking charge of the situation. Most probably, I was also asking the same questions you were asking.  I was also feeling the dismay you must have felt as we watched the situation dragged on for hours.

I hope you’ll understand that just like you, I also feel enraged. Though for different reasons. Yours is out of the senseless killing. Mine is from the fact that a lone hostage taker can potentially bring down the good relation between our countries. With Hongkong black listing the Philippines and branding it as a place none of your citizen should step into. It’s nothing short of telling the whole world that whenever foreigners go to Manila, they will also be held hostage. But I’m sure you all know that that is not the case. And that it's an unfair retribution for one man's crime.

Manila, just like Hongkong or any other place in the world, is a modern civilization playing host not only to normal and decent citizens but to some bad seeds as well. And Mendoza’s madness is an isolated case that should not be used to generalize a population that is known not only in Asia but the whole world as warm people with wide, warmer smiles. After all the sensational headlines about Mendoza are gone, I want you and the whole world to remember that we are still the same caring and God-fearing souls you knew. And that's the way we'll always be.