Pope Francis’s message

Every one of us are also responsible for our “small” contributions to the destruction of our environment

“Among those who I keep in my thoughts and prayers are the over 250 million migrants worldwide.” This was the message of his holiness Pope Francis for the 51st World Day of Peace on January 1, 2018. The Pontiff has recognized that for the migrants to find peace, they are willing to “risk their lives on a journey that is often long and perilous” to face challenges including putting their lives on the line. He said there’s a lot yet to be done before our brothers and sisters can once again live peacefully in a safe homes.

But it seems we can no longer understand what is happening around us. The environment has gone awry, with storms ravaging through vast tracks of land covering distant regions. Judging from the number of casualties, it seems that we are still far from that desired readiness. Government and other sectors are trying to fill the gap by providing skills training particularly among functionaries in the communities.

If we look at the bigger picture though, no amount of palliative measures can protect our people from calamities. Many government officials do not have the political will to enforce the law against, for example, land conversions that continues to threaten the balance of our ecosystem. The state of our environment continues to be dismal as reflected in a report in July this year.

“Nobody is blameless for the sordid state of the Philippine forests,” forestry expert Adolfo Revilla said. He faulted the greedy logging companies who are “in collusion” with unscrupulous officials and authorities. These people are also responsible in denuding even the country’s critical watersheds, national parks and other protected areas.

Also to blame are the “lawless greedy,” mostly logging companies of old, with illegal loggers and tree cutters likely in collusion with the authorities. They destroyed the forest resources not only in productive forests but also in critical watersheds, national parks and other protected areas.

Every one of us are also responsible for our “small” contributions to the destruction of our environment with our waste products. The “throwaway” mentality that Filipinos are generally guilty of, and are shamelessly practicing makes us as guilty as the big players.

“Karaniwang tao saan ka tatakbo, kapag nawasak iisang mundo,” so goes Joey Ayala’s lamentation on the continuing degradation of our environment. This was over three decades or so ago, and yet so little has changed about our attitudes, particularly on the importance of keeping our share in preserving our ecosystem.

This brings us back to the message of Pope Francis on the woes of migrants and refugees all over the world. “Welcoming others requires concrete commitment, a network of assistance and goodwill, vigilant and sympathetic attention, the responsible management of new and complex situations that at times compound numerous existing problems, to say nothing of resources, which are always limited.”

It has always been said by common folks that no matter who is installed in the seat of power, if the current system persists, no amount of campaigning for change will make a difference to the lives of people, especially migrants and refugees, among whom are the Indigenous Peoples constantly being threatened with annihilation. --