Insights on Rosca's Generations

I was struck by how fortunate I really am that I am not raised in an environment like this.

The story I believe is not something that happens only in our country. Nor is this something that happens only during the martial law days when the Pinoys cannot exercise their freedom. Feudalism still happens to this day (think Hacienda Luisita..). Although we practice democracy, generations of following the feudal system made it difficult to break it off- the have-nots depend on the landlords they serve to help put food on the table.

I was dumbfounded when I read the part where the daughter offered herself to the soldiers in exchange of her father’s freedom. In fact, she need not even rescue her father – she hated him and she could’ve let him rot behind prison bars, her family could move on with life. But she took matters in her own hands, offered herself to the soldiers and killed her father the following morning.

What she did, according to our laws/religion was wrong. But who are we to blame her given the environment she was exposed to? Given the lack of education? Given her ignorance? And the questions lead to other questions: Should our standards of right or wrong depend on the environment we are exposed to? Is it justifiable to say, “I did not know it was wrong”, given the lack of education, given the inhumane environment? (Mejo malayo to pero….On the national level.. Lookng at the bigger picture) Does the principle, “Those who have less in life must have more in law” still apply? And do those who ‘have less in life’ know that they ’should have more in law’?

I’m sure the family knows the difference between right or wrong – else the kids shouldn’t have bothered to tell the story of how Old Selo got the broken lip, the kids shouldn’t be bothered by how their father harms their mother, the father shouldn’t have fled when he realized that he was hurting his kids, the eldest daughter shouldn’t have took matters in her own hands and kill their father if she believes that it’s ok for her father to hurt their mother…. But what could they do? If the family filed a complaint about what the men did to Old Selo, if the mother or the kids file for domestic violence against the father, would they find the justice they seek? How long would it take, how much money do they have to spend, what else would they have to sacrifice (their pride, dignity) before they get the justice they deserve?

For generations the poor had nothing to hold on to but each other. “Laws were paper and ink. They were kept in filing cabinets in offices and in town and city buildings.. People’s laws had nothing to do with people…”