EDITORIAL

Are You At Peace?

Peace means freedom from public disturbance or disorder; public security; law and order. It is freedom from disagreement or quarrels. It is harmony, concord or an undisturbed state of mind and absence of mental conflict; serenity, quiet and tranquility.

With these definitions, do we have peace? Do we have freedom from public disturbance? Is there public security? Is there harmony among men and nation? Is there quiet, serenity, and tranquility? Your answer is as accurate as mine.

US President George W. Bush was thrown with a pair of shoes, one at a time, by a newsman while in Baghdad, Iraq holding press conference two weeks ago. Last month, some terrorists raided a 5 star hotel in Mumbai, India, killed some people, burned a building and hostaged some hotel guests.

In Bangkok, Thailand, a large group of Thais opposed to their Prime Minister, occupied the international airport. As a result, thousands of foreign tourists and travelers were stranded. There was disturbance.

In Iligan City, two unidentified persons embedded bombs inside a mall. The bomb exploded, killed some persons, scores were wounded. In Iloilo, NPA elements stopped a passenger van, asked the passengers to move out and cremated the vehicle. The burning, police claimed, was done because of the owner’s refusal to pay revolutionary tax.

In Badio, Numancia, Aklan, personnel of Akleco cut off electricity of a house due to some problem. When the owner arrived in his house, he found out he has no more electric supply. He got mad, went out of his house and challenged anybody to a fight. An innocent looking young man came near him. And that was his end. He was hacked to death. He was brought to the hospital where a physician pronounced him “dead on arrival.”

Meanwhile, the mad man was shot and hit twice on his legs. The mad man is now in jail. The young man was buried.

An inmate in Nalook Jail, Kalibo, Aklan got sick. He was brought to the hospital for treatment. With him in his ward were his beloved wife and children. There was no mention of jail guard.

At about 2:30 dawn of Saturday last week, some unidentified men went inside his room, shot and killed him instantly. The killers just walked away softly.

Also last week, one evening at C. Laserna Street, Poblacion, Kalibo, a police officer was stabbed and was seriously wounded by a minor. As a consequence, the police officer just fired his service pistol “to whom it may concern”. After the firing, a pregnant woman was hit dead with her child in the womb. Her brother was also hit dead.

With these accounts, is there peace? Is there security? Are we tranquil? Nobody can say, I’m secure, I’m safe.

In Badio, Numancia, Aklan on Sunday at one o’clock in the afternoon, two men operated their chain saws, cut trees, sew the lumber. People around the area who should be resting were disturbed. Chain saws were noisy. There is freedom to the chain saw operators, but people resting on a Sunday were disturbed. Is there tranquility?

If people can only empathize, put themselves into the situation of others, there could be peace. But almost all of us are self-centered. We don’t mind others to obtain things of their choice. We kept silent, agonize inside.
One suggestion to obtain peace is to have peace first at home. A peaceful home means peaceful community, means peaceful nations, means peaceful world. As Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “Peace like charity, begins at home”. Peace must start at home, in the office, in the work place.

In the words of Cicero, “peace is liberty in tranquility”. How can noisy people have peace? “First keep peace within yourself, then you can also bring peace to others”. This is the advice of Thomas A. Kempis. My late auntie advised me to keep calm, never get angry because to be angry is to get tired easily. An angry person becomes unreasonable.

Man by nature wants to do good, however, man is proven to commit mistake because of anger, because of pride, because of emotion. An angry, emotional person tends to commit crimes, misdemeanor where afterwards he repents his imprudence.

Most of us blame the police for the absence of peace. But it is we the people who make peace. The police only manages peace for the people. It is the people who create and maintain sustainable peace. The police can stay peacefully in their headquarters if the people are peaceful. Remember, it is the people who creates either peace or chaos. The obligation of the police is to identify who made peace and who started the trouble.

Hence, live in peace for that is everybody’s desire, a universal esire. /MP

Merry Christmas & Genuine Love!