For the third time in 18 months, France is again in mourning, reeling from a major terrorist attack in the city of Nice that killed 84 people of various nationalities and wounded over a hundred.
During a fireworks display as part of the July 14 Bastille Day Celebration, Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, a French Tunisian, drove a truck for over a mile along the main seaside boulevard where the festivities was taking place and plowed through the crowd before getting killed himself. Many of the dead and wounded were children whose lives were cut short by a mentally disturbed individual with a perverted view toward his fellow men.
Since the attack on the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris in January 2015, 231 people have been killed and about 206 wounded by terrorists. This makes France, second only to the United States in the developed world in terms of lives lost because of terrorism. France is turning into a virtual police state because of the number of heavily armed uniformed personnel patrolling the streets in many cities.
Because of the Nice incident, French President Francois Hollande extended the state of emergency for another six months. He also vowed to maintain and toughen French policy in Syria and Iraq. And as he stated in the two previous terrorist attacks in Paris, terrorism will not change the French way of life by forcing the country to abandon its democratic values.
Clearly, however, terrorism is taking its toll on the French people. As one witness in the Nice attack who escaped injury said when interviewed by a CNN reporter, he could not understand why there is so much hatred in this world. From what is emerging from initial police investigation, the perpetrator simply wanted to kill as many people as he could. As it turned out, there were several Tunisians and Muslims among those who were killed.
Tourism will certainly take a hit. France, after all, is the most visited country in the world. Unlike the previous terrorists attacks in Paris where everyone in the political divide were united, the handling of the security in Nice was severely criticized by former French President Nicolas Sarkozy—and for good reason. Why for instance were the barricades in the entrances of the main boulevard where the celebration was to take place not strengthened to prevent trucks from ramming through? What assumptions were made by the police in preparing their security plan? One would think that blocking the entrances to the event was basic. There should also have been considerable police presence in these places. In this case, however, it appears that the barricades that were installed were very weak and no police presence at the barricades allowing the perpetrator to drive for almost two kilometers before being stopped. The big fear of every police organization trying to prevent terrorism are lone-wolf attacks by single individuals. This was the case in Orlando, Florida and is the same in Nice. But the Nice attack was somewhat different in the sense that there was security preparation. That it failed to prevent the attack will have to be explained by the police to the satisfaction of the public. The people themselves must have sensed this because they booed the French Prime Minister when he laid a wreath where the incident happened.
What all this random terrorist attack on soft targets is telling us is that there simply is not a place in this planet where a traveler can be absolutely safe anymore. Western countries that have been routinely issuing travel advisories warning their citizens traveling to developing countries not to go to certain places must now also be assessing the safety of travel in their own countries. For Filipinos who are able to visit Europe for vacation, it would be prudent and wise to be on guard all the time and be aware of what is happening around you. This way, if something does happen, one can at least be prepared to act.
Terrorism has really changed the world.
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By all accounts, the decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague, invalidating all of China’s claims in the South China Sea, was a tremendous and decisive victory for our country. We got more than what we bargained for. Our subsequent government actions have also been by and large mature and responsible.
A few days ago, President Rodrigo Duterte announced his intention of appointing former President Ramos as special envoy to talk to China about our dispute in the South China Sea. The President could not have made a better choice. FVR has the international stature, respect even by the Chinese and the experience to do a good job.
It is not, however, that simple. FVR is 88 years old and cannot stay away from the country for long periods of time. Although relatively healthy for his age, he has to be monitored by his doctors. This job also cannot simply be done in just one sitting but over an extended period of time.
There is also the question of his exact mandate. FVR has said that he wants to meet with President Duterte to discuss these issues before committing to anything. What seems to be apparent also is that this administration unlike the previous one would like to be more open minded but deliberate in crafting the best position that the country will take if indeed there will be bilateral talks. But China seems to be scuttling it before it can even begin by imposing conditions which we cannot agree due to constitutional restrictions. Both countries should simply sit down and talk without any preconditions.