Nation-building and the Ateneo
Leloy Claudio does not like the anti-politics framework the Ateneo teaches its students.
Eagle without talons? Nation-building and the Ateneo de Manila University
by L. Claudio
The celebration of the sesquicentennial of the Ateneo de Manila University presents an opportunity to celebrate not only the immense contribution the institution has made to Philippine society, but also to consider what more the university can do in light of its frequently articulated goal of building the nation. University President Fr. Bienvenido Nebres outlines his general approach to nation-building which he derives from Dr. Jose Rizal, the Ateneo’s most prominent alumnus. The Rizal that Nebres draws from is not the firebrand who sparked the first nationalist revolution in Asia – the hero who spoke the truth to power amidst massive injustices. His Rizal is the one exiled in Dapitan – the gagged Rizal forced to channel his energies towards community-building projects like the building of schools and the improvement of irrigation systems.
He notes in a speech to the Knights of Rizal: “In his years in Dapitan, we see a Rizal not of the Noli or the Fili or of many letters and poems, but a Rizal who said less and did a lot.” This defanged apolitical Rizal is the bedrock of the nation-building strategy of the university. Instead of criticizing the government for its injustices, Nebres’s approach focuses on addressing immediate and concrete needs like housing and disaster relief. The flagship project of this strategy is Ateneo’s partnership with Gawad Kalinga (GK). To quote the president again: “In Spain and Manila, he [Rizal] wrote and preached against injustices. In Dapitan, he simply worked to create the foundations for a better life for the people. He may well have launched Gawad Kalinga a century ago.”
This Rizal may well be the solution to our country’s problems for, as Nebres argues, today “there is so much talk and so little done.” Indeed, although a lot of Gawad Kalinga’s development approaches have been questioned, it is undeniable that it has contributed to the reduction of slums. Ateneo’s education programs in depressed areas likewise contribute to long-term national development.
But what are the implications of de-emphasizing political criticism in favor of immediate concrete action? Historian Floro Quibuyen argues that the image of an apolitical Rizal was used by the American colonial government to encourage Filipinos to cooperate with them even as they subjugated the country. Reminding Filipinos of the anti-colonial and revolutionary Rizal would have been unwise given their mission of pacification.
Similarly, in the context of the Ateneo, this Rizal and the framework of nation-building that it’s associated with has been used to question and erase the university’s long history of social and political activism. As a former student and now lecturer, I’ve been told many times by students and faculty associated with the university’s official nation-building programs that Marcos-era activism is dead, that the aktibista’s approach of criticizing the national government did not and does not work. More actions and less talk; let’s just build houses. As a student writing about GK in the official university website claims, “the aktibista and makibaka days are long gone.”
This anti-politics atmosphere has made it difficult to forward issues of national concern in the university. I was witness to the lethargy of many students and teachers during the time when mobilizations were being made to protest the NBN-ZTE scandal. I saw how this withdrawal from issues of national concern influenced the moderate stance taken by the Ateneo regarding the issue of whether Arroyo deserved to stay in power. While basketball nemesis La Salle called for resignation, Ateneo called for reflection. An administrator personally rebuked me when I said the university should join the lobby for the Freedom of Information Act since it would allow the public to scrutinize shady deals like the NBN-ZTE. Won’t work, I was told; let’s just lobby for another disaster relief bill. It doesn’t surprise me, then, that in her final State of the Nation Address this country’s most despised president claimed the university and its president as partners in her goal of building a strong republic.
There is one major flaw in the university’s anti-politics framework: the claim that activism with its attendant criticism of national politics does not work. It does. In the 1970s, the “talk” of student activists (many of them Ateneans like Edgard Jopson) conscienticized an entire generation, exposing them to the ills of authoritarianism. It was a slow process - educating and opening people’s eyes takes time – but it worked. When the crowd in EDSA overthrew the dictator, it was a victory for those who fomented dissent. It was the legacy of the makibaka activism that is currently derided in the Ateneo. And lest we think that nothing was gained from EDSA, one should consider that we currently have a free press, participate in regular elections, and have a growing civil society. Political scientist Nathan Quimpo, for instance, claims that grassroots NGOs who engage in legal activities like aiding farmers in land reform cases were few and far between before EDSA. It was the revolution that opened this democratic space. Our system isn’t perfect, but it’s significantly better.
After discussing my critical take on the university’s nation-building programs in my Philippine history class, I was asked by a student, “so are you still proud to be an Atenean?” I did not hesitate to say yes. I am proud of the Ateneo that produced martyrs like Edgar Jopson, Manny Yap, Billy Begg, Evelio Javier, and the revolutionary Rizal.
And I am proud of the Ateneo that can be when we remember these heroes once more.
on December 10th, 2009 at 8:36 am
1)The Ateneo Heroes of Today:
* Chris Tiu
*Rabeh Al-Hussaini
*Nonoy Baclao
*Jai Reyes
*Eric Salamat
2)Main Issue:
Beat La Salle!
3)Inspiring Political Slogans:
“Fight” “One big fight!” “Fabilioh!” “Halikinu!” “Three fights and a fight, fight, blue and white!” “Go Ateneo!” “Blue Eagle Spelling” “Animo Ateneo!
on December 10th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
EQ,
Once upon a time they used to sing Blue Eagle the King now they sing A Song for Mary.
on December 12th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
Ateneo must address national issues in various ways. By saying it wants its thrust to be more on nation-building does not mean it must not encourage protest when it is the action that is appropriate. It is not an either/or situation. I think both tracks are necessary.
The truth is, if you can’t spark outrage against injustice among young people when they are supposed to be more idealistic, they will simply become adults who are accepting of it. It’s unbelievable that there is no statement from the school about Martial Law, Maguindanao Massacre, and other issues, but alumni get email about every basketball game of Ateneo vs. La salle.
Internally, it must also reflect why we have in our roster greatest heroes and the most shameless rogues.
on December 12th, 2009 at 2:08 pm
well im not a product of those prestigious institutions , but i did read of how attending ateneo made a difference in jose rizals life. i also remember how impressed i was at how brave those ateneo students were after the snap election and edsa peoples power, they were there in front of the lines. parang hindi kako anak nang mayayaman. anyway, i created a group in facebook, pang asar lang naman.baka gusto nyong sumali.
http://www.facebook.com/reqs.php#/group.php?gid=194148298794&ref=mf
on December 12th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Wow. Welcome to the Old Egypt of the New World. Work, you men and women, and work without a word!
on December 12th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
At the core, Ateneans are elitists.
As elitists, they believe that the masa are not ready for full democracy because the latter are not educated.
So they do not rock the boat and work to ‘educate’ the masa to be eventually ready for democracy.
I won’t be surprised if they use Rizal’s warning about the slaves of today becoming the tyrants of tomorrow as the basis for their apolitical approach.
Ateneo and all the exclusive schools should be abolished to reduce this kind of elitism..
on December 12th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
this anti-politics stance is hypocritical considering that some of the worse national security strategy of the present administration has been cooked by the ultra rightest Intengan-Norberto Gonzales gang.
am sharing an article i wrote in 2006 in Mindanews entitled: “Are political killings part of national security policy? http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=666&Itemid=96
on December 13th, 2009 at 1:03 am
I am embarassed by the Ateneo’s current anti-political bias. I am proud to be an Atenean because of schoolmates like Manny Yap and Billy Begg.
Manny and Bill made “a person-for-others” concrete and made the ultimate sacrifice for their beliefs. Ironically, these are beliefs founded on Ateneo’s liberal arts training to make its students critical thinkers on behalf of the common good and agents of progressive social change — in whatever arena they choose to spread their wings.
This year the Ateneo administration celebrates Ateneo’s 150 years. This year I celebrate Manny Yap’s 57 years, his age if he were alive today. He disappeared in the 1970s.
I dedicate the following poem to him; I cannot offer one to Ateneo:
*********************************
A Purpose Served
I imagine –
1.
Down the hill
the brush caressed his crumpled body
a human rights warrior
bearing badges of defiance
now crusty claret.
Manny lay cold and spent
like a hammer in a corner
of the smithy’s dirt floor
rusting, unnoticed.
In quiet confidence, he had forged
other dreamers in his ways–
scores of cadres to help frame
an unfettered future
then, still in his mind’s eye
and in others’, too.
This hammer had served faithfully.
2.
Before, a hammer–now, rusting iron.
It returns to the earth in its new state
like fallen leaves and wilted flowers
and people’s tears–
its purpose served.
“Death is simply another state.
Each people’s worker is part of a dialectic. ”
Manny’s death merely transformed one part
and created a new, more discerning unity.
The warrior had lived his poem,
the poet had lived his war.
Though stilled, he is still of the species.
His thoughts and words and works
resonate in the lives of people
around whom he wrapped his heart.
They’re also spawning new dreamers.
3.
Fellow travelers are grasping and defending–
and improving on–his life and their own
as men and Man.
Deeded now to the owners of surplus labour
the Worker, reaching some critical mass
will be principal in the spring.
The principal of the future
in time will free the birds of peace
and freedom.
And, I imagine, Manny’s eyes–
glasses off–will be smiling then.
*******************************
Thanks for for a chance to speak.
Carlos
on December 13th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Ateneo has somehow been reduced to college basketball fanaticism. What a shame. There’s more to life than college basketball.
on December 14th, 2009 at 1:57 am
I’m so out of touch… I had no idea Ateneo had become so apolitical until I read this. I was a college student during Erap’s impeachment days and EDSA II… I remember joining so many rallies then - at Batasan, Senate (the “Jericho March”), and finally, EDSA II itself. I distinctly remember marching with Fr. Ben… I was so in awe of how this elderly Jesuit would walk long distances with us students, unfazed by the heat. We compared him to Gandalf, as “Lord of the Rings” was in the theaters those days. As I recall, we were even encouraged to join rallies then and the school was very vocal about political issues.
That was just within this decade… Perhaps this shift occurred because of everything that has happened since then? Particularly because she who we all rallied behind back in 2001 has turned into a huge disappointment, to put it mildly.
I must say though that Ateneo did many of us proud with its response to Ondoy:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/note.php?note_id=150969108028&id=91863128074&ref=share
on December 15th, 2009 at 2:08 am
Beautiful poem Carlos. Thanks for sharing it with us.
on December 15th, 2009 at 3:52 am
[...] is the original: Nation-building and the Ateneo By admin | category: ATENEO De Manila | tags: attended-the-forum, champions, [...]
on December 15th, 2009 at 9:40 pm
The Ateneo community has potential for political criticism and participation, which is why I would agree with most comments - it really is a shame that the priorities of the university do not include more political activity. I wish the university would espouse more radical thought and spearhead more political action. Sure, there may be projects geared towards nation-building - but goals should not just be limited there. Some problems may be solved at surface level, but deeper, wider, structural problems (many of which are rooted in political structures), should be changed as well. This cannot be done without direct political action, criticism and participation.
A little additional note. Ateneans ‘at the core’ are elitists - too generalizing. Regarding self-righteous stereotyping - not all Ateneans, or even La Sallians, are snooty, rich kids. Not all of them are obsessed with basketball and blind to everything else. Yes, it has its own history of shameless rogues, but other schools (including those who keep bashing other schools) also have those among them too. Similarly, just like other schools, it also has its heroes, as pointed out in the article. Unfortunately, activism and political participation among members nowadays really is minimal and weak (but there is potential). But still, it doesn’t mean they are all the same. And changes can still be made.
on December 16th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
For an elite institution that is so self-conscious of its role in leadership formation, an “anti-political nation-building” is a disservice. If you want to mold effective socially-responsible leaders, they must be able to think critically and act ethically with the force of moral courage, especially if they do end up in leadership roles in society; roles, by the way, that may not be popular or comfortable as the one played by Edgar Jopson (whose types have been few and far between).
Unfortunately, the majority of Ateneans in positions of power have so far been calculating SOBs or DOBs who have been sometimes labelled as “evil incarnate.” Of course, there are also many unsung products of Ateneo whose leadership, works and quiet service have been invaluable and may yet prove to be revolutionary.
But, I also appreciate Fr. Nebres’ point. Typically, the critical “political” voices achieve more rhetorically than in actuality. Activist political visions push for so much grand and comprehensive solutions yet accomplish so little in terms of concrete impact in people’s lives.So, in this vein, Fr. Nebres poses a challenge to those who advocate for a more political nation-building. Sometimes, the more effective work happens in the fringes and not in the national limelight.
Of course, it also depends on the social context, There is a time to be political and critical; there is also a time for solid, somewhat silent (even underground) apolitical action. I think our times call for both.