"They are always in bad taste."
"They are always in bad taste."
For as long as I can remember, the annual Philippine Military Academy graduation ceremony has been covered by national media, and by this means the nation is made aware of the new crop of military stalwarts.
The public find out the batch name that forever distinguishes a particular cohort and is associated with all their future accomplishments and failures; the names of the valedictorian and top students; and narratives of some of the students’ lives, many of them having overcome adversity to reach their goals.
It is a day when the PMA’s core values of honor, excellence, and selfless service to God and country are publicly affirmed and celebrated.
Mabalasik, this year’s batch name, means “fierce, irascible, furious,” and perhaps that’s how at least some of the graduates and their families felt at the commencement exercises this year, when the guest of honor and speaker arrived late, made rape jokes, and was unable to hand out diplomas to everyone.
It is a tradition that the sitting president attend the PMA graduation and hand out the diplomas. Last May 26, President Rodrigo Duterte arrived at Fort Del Pilar in Baguio City two hours late and handed awards to only three people.
The President gave the diploma, presidential saber, and certificate of ownership of a house and lot to valedictorian Dionne Umalla. He also presented a new gun to the class goat, Danmark Solomon, and his watch to cadet Albert Jalaguit.
Vice President Leni Robredo handed the award to salutatorian Jonathan Mendoza, while the remaining diplomas, over 200 of them, were given out by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana.
The President was observed by many to be unsteady on his feet, almost falling over when he boarded a military jeep for the trooping-the-line ceremony.
The next day, Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said that the President was “sleepy” and had only two hours of sleep after staying up late to work. This comes after recent issues questioning the President’s health.
Duterte’s tardiness and subsequent indisposition are understandable if in fact he lacked sleep or was unwell. People are not machines, and it can’t be expected for someone to be full of energy all the time. It’s a factor that sometimes cannot be controlled.
However, one thing the President can control is the content of his speech. This time, again, he made unsavory jokes that will forever mar the Mabalasik Class of 2019’s memory of their special day.
As he was signing an order pardoning infractions committed by underclassmen, Duterte cracked, “I need good and capable soldiers. Patawarin ko kayo… The No. 1 is for rape, the No. 2 is drugs with rape—with robbery. Para sa Muntinlupa [prison] ito. Third, rape of women in Baguio—the beautiful ones. Sino iyan?”
It was supposedly a joke, but it cast a shadow over those students, whose infractions were certainly not on the order of what Duterte cited. It was a low point, particularly the reference to raping Baguio women.
What made it more sordid was that the class valedictorian is a woman, one of five so far who have topped their classes since women were first accepted into the PMA in 1993.
Again Panelo made excuses for the President, saying the rape references were “mischievous remarks to make people laugh” and that people are used to it.
Duterte himself says he’ll keep on making those lame jokes.
The Thursday before the PMA graduation last Sunday, Duterte was in Davao, where he admitted that his penchant for misogynistic remarks is “a trait that I know the people wouldn’t like.”
While he professes high respect for women in his family such as his mother, activist Soledad, and politician daughter Sara, he says, “If you don’t want to hear it [sexist jokes], then don’t listen to me… But those jokes were not intentional. It is there planted in the genetics of men because we have been doing it [ever] since,” he added.
Also in Davao, Duterte said that after Adam’s creation “The woman was a second thought…It’s true. Women are just [an] afterthought.”
Is valedictorian Umalla an afterthought? Are Soledad and Sara Duterte also afterthoughts? For those who might laugh at these jokes, try applying them to the women you love and see if they’re still funny.
The truth is that making misogynistic remarks, whether intended as a joke or not, is not “planted in the genetics of men.” It is a cultural norm brought about by a patriarchal mindset. It can be changed. And just because men have been doing it for the longest time, does not mean it is the right thing to do.
Rape jokes are always in bad taste. They perpetuate false ideas about and discriminatory behavior toward women. To say it is to normalize it, that is why such instances, particularly those made by the highest in the land, must be called out everytime they occur.
Mabalasik Class, you are better than this. Consider this an example of ‘what not to do.’ Fellow Filipinos, we can do better than make rape jokes at solemn and dignified occasions; in fact, we can stop making them, period, and start respecting women and their rights.
I salute the Mabalasik Class of 2019. In your service to the nation, may you always remain committed to the highest values. /FB and Twitter: @DrJennyO