Some Things Are Worth Fighting For (Quasi States)

Territorial disputes, self-determination, recognition, genocide, civil war and many more are just few of the many issues which are still incessantly cycling up around the international community for many years. These words have been constantly present in media, internet and even in the streets which also signified the tears fell from the cries, blood dropped from the killings, wounds that can’t be healed and memories that were being tried to bury despite of the long years of struggle. And with that struggle, many people sacrificed their selves even it was a matter of life and death.

As time went by, quasi-states have been continuously escalating. These states that still tried to fight for their respective sovereignties have different motives. It could be to protect their ethnicity, culture, language and to be free from the exploitation and maltreatment from the first and second-class states. And so no one could blame them for having such kind of reveries. But this matter about the limbo world can still be resolve in different ways depending upon the situations that are encountered. 

First thing is a referendum must be applied so that the voices of the people in a certain territory would reign. It should be their decision if they want to become an independent state or to remain as an autonomous region within a certain country since the state should be for the people and by the people although this is exceptional for the territories who do not uphold democracy. Just like how the new established state of Southern Sudan underwent a referendum. According to the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission, there were 98.83% or 3,792,518 voters who agreed for secession. This was a big step for the Sudanese people to achieve their goal for independence. However, referendum like this has its own limitations too. Not all voters have the capacity or knowledge to make decisions about the issue at stake and not all of the votes that are being casted would directly mean that these represent the whole people. 

Secondly is to follow the Montevideo Convention or the declarative theory of statehood including the recognition from other states. Although it is being adopted nowadays, yet there is no any strict implementation of it. The qualifications for an entity to become a state must be observed strictly and there must be certain standards that should be met. This is for the reason of preventing the incessant occurrence of the so-called failed states. Like for instance, the Sovereign Order of Malta. Yet even though it has its own people, government, territory, sovereignty and recognition, the international community had not provided any clear basis for such qualifications which eventually making such state as one of the failed states. That’s why, Malta is still currently dependent with the different aids given by Western countries like Monaco such as medical and humanitarian programs since they still have the hard time to improve on their own. 

Furthermore, the UN Security Council should firmly observe its functions as what the chapter five of the UN Charter stated. Such body has an important and critical role in resolving different issues specifically in maintaining international peace and security. The UN Secretary General must strengthen their role as mediator in international issues. One of their achievements was the Resolution 1244 that they made for Kosovo and Serbia in order to prevent further casualties on both sides although Kosovo’s desire to be independent didn't happen.

Not all territories can be real states. Some would take different processes first before it happen whereas some would dare to struggle even risking their lives just for the sake of protecting their will, believing that they could achieve it someday. However, eradicating these problems is too far from the reality but it could be lessen if the parties involved would cooperate in maintaining peace and to highly discourage immense hostilities with each other. As what Ronald Reagan highlighted, peace is not the absence of conflict but the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.

Reference:

EISA. (2011). Sudan: 2011 Southern Sudan Referendum Commission. Retrieved from:

http://www.eisa.org.za/WEP/sud2011ssrc.htm.

Sovereign Order of Malta. (2011). Latest Interventions. Retrieved from:

http://www.orderofmalta.org/?lang=en.

Sovereign Order of Malta. (2011). First Concert Hosted By the Prince and Princess of Monaco is Held in Support of Humanitarian Works of the Order of Malta. Retrieved from:

http://www.orderofmalta.org/news/50918/first-concert-hosted-by-the-prince-and-princess-of-monaco-held-in-support-of-humanitarian-works-of-the-order-of-malta/?lang=en.

Man as a History-Making Existence

We may can’t deny the fact especially when we were still young and maybe even until now, we rely on the so-called destiny of our lives. We came to a point that we thought that everything is dependent upon God’s will. That’s why if we failed, we started saying that it is Him who is the one who decided that it should really happened to us. That we thought there’s a reason why it happened. Or our decisions became dependent to Him making us fatalistic. It is like we believe everything which happens to us is inevitable because that is how destiny controlled our lives, that is how God wanted it to happen. 

Like for instance, in my situation as a student, whenever I get a failing grade in any of my subjects, I think that it’s God’s will and there’s something that He wanted me to do and that is something I can’t control anymore because it is His will. But we don’t know or not all of us are aware that being a human is also being a history-making existence. We are labeled to be history-making existence because we can create civilizations. We can create our own history. Human beings are temporal beings and at the same time we are free beings. Free beings in such a way that we all gained sovereignty. In other words, we ourselves control our own lives. It is us who can make our lives meaningful. What’s the use of the freedom given by God if He is the one who decides for us? 

Maybe we could say He guides for us but He never interrupts with our lives. He gave us full freedom, no more, no less. Thus, we have the task and responsibility to write our own stories in our lives. We are not destined nor living alongside with our fate. The world is a man’s work and fruit of his labor. However, there are instances that the freedom gained by people could also be controlled by other people. As we remember how Adolf Hitler killed millions of people specifically the Jews which became known as the genocide incident wherein the lives of these Jews were controlled by a dictator. A dictator who also made a history that is still remembered until now. 

Then there goes the “history repeats itself” statement being connected here which is at the same time, not a valid explanation to use whenever an inevitable incident occurred which also happened before. History will not repeat if people would not do it again also. History does not work on its own. It depends on us on how we create it. Thus, such holocaust will never happen again if we will not let it happen also.

Freedom has been one of the wonderful gifts given to us by the Divine Providence. And since it is a gift, human beings should also learn how to take good care of it and not to take it for granted or use it not in a good way.

Formspring Is Shutting Down.

I was just randomly checking my accounts in different social media when all of a sudden, a certain window in the upper part of my Formspring account was displayed with a title, "Important Formspring News". At first I thought this might be a hoax but eventually, I decided to click and check it. Then, I saw this letter from Formspring's founder and CEO.

"Formspring launched in November 2009 as a unique way for people to have engaging conversations about anything. Eventually reaching over 30 million registered users and 4 billion posts, Formspring grew beyond my wildest dreams to become an important part of how people interact online.

I’m grateful to each of you that helped make the site better by asking questions and posting responses. None of this would have been possible without you. Through the community you created, we’ve met new people, strengthened relationships, opened our minds to different points of view, and made each other smile.

Unfortunately, and with great sadness, I must announce that Formspring is shutting down. While we’ve had great success in reaching a broad audience, it’s been challenging to sustain the resources needed to keep the lights on.

Sunday, March 31st will be the last day you’ll be able to ask questions or post content on Formspring. You’ll be able to export your responses from now through Monday, April 15th, after which the site and apps will go offline, and any content will be permanently deleted.

You can export the responses you’ve posted by following these steps:

1. Log into your account and visit http://www.formspring.me/account/export
2. Click the export button
3. When your export is ready you’ll receive an email
4. Visit http://www.formspring.me/account/export again to download a zip file with your data

Thanks again for all the smiles.

Sincerely,

Ade Olonoh, Founder and CEO."

And nothing follows. I know there are a lot of social medias specifically those which have ask-and-answer feature like Formspring and Ask.fm are already existing right now. I am not really addicted to these except when boredom invades me. But just like Friendster, everything has its own ending. It made me sad upon discovering this. I found it interesting even though I answer and ask questions that are so NONSENSE. Yet, who cares? I still enjoyed availing the services provided by this certain social media. 

With so much to say, thanks to the founder of such. We know that this is not as easy as 1-2-3 to make this and it needs a lot of efforts and time for the staffs who maintain it just for the sake of making others' lives more connected and helping them discovered different opinions and point of views. I just hope it would still continue or they could find a way to resolve this. Since they've started already helping people to detour their boredom like mine, why not continue and enhance it more?

Nang Nak (Thai Movie)

http://tastythailand.com/visit-mae-nak-shrine-in-
bangkok-if-you-love-a-good-thai-ghost-story/

Buddhism has a lot of different principles and teachings in which its followers believed that these are helpful for their common good and way for them to exercise Buddhahood.

In the movie entitled “Nang Nak”, some of these teachings were shown such as the concept of the marks of existence (trilakshana) in which could also refer to the first step in the noble eightfold path, the perfect view (samma-ditti). It connoted here that a human existence was a chain of discontinuous moments and no any person was constant from one moment. As it was paralleled to the movie, Nak had not yet realized that she should let go her notion of permanence of everything which made her to cling for those things that were already unattainable for her situation as a dead person and which also led her to pain and dissatisfaction. Before she gave up her mortality, she failed to find enlightenment for the reason that amidst of her death, she still literally lived with her husband thinking that everything will still be the same no matter what. Somehow at the end of the movie, through the help of the High Dignitary, she tried to detach with those things she craved including Mak and achieved liberation and peace. The latter could also refer to the second step of the eightfold path which was the perfect resolve (samma-sankappa). Wherein, in order for a person not to cause harm with other sentient beings, he or she should live without any attachment to the physical world and to have good will and sympathy towards them. 

Another teaching could be the perfect speech (samma-vacha) where it implied that one should say the truth and avoid the lies, gossips and slander. This could be seen in many parts of the movie like when Mak tried to let the wife of Pigri know about her husband’s death during the war though he was stopped by Nak and also when his friend Um and the High Dignitary tried to convince Mak about the death of his wife despite the fact that Nak might haunt them for doing that. These would show how they were so concerned for their fellow beings. In addition, the concept of perfect effort (samma-vayama) was also portrayed in such a way that this effort must be “karmically” beneficial and not “karmically” detrimental. Or in other words, those who do good things could attain good karma and vice versa.

While on the other hand, suffering is like a twin in people’s lives. It is already a part of it. But as the life continues, humanity should know how to deal with it for its own survival. Though it is not that easy to encounter both simple and tough sufferings, what’s the point here is that how somebody learned on such situation, and how he/she made him/herself strong in surpassing it and for the another sufferings that he/she could come across along someday.

***Taken from my AS 311 Philosophy and Religions of Asia essay paper.***

Han Dynasty of China

            The country’s mayhem, paucity due to depleted treasury, and large rebellion of rebel armies against Qin leaders’ despotism and repression brought about the collapse of the Qin dynasty. Until a new rebel leader named Liu Bang emerged and founded a new dynasty which was named as Han. Though the Han government continued what the Qin dynasty had started and contributed, some various changes were also made. Because of the off-putting upshots of the Legalist form of government from Qin, this was combined with Confucianism’s principles in order to lessen its harsh effects. It highlighted the role of the government which was to serve its people. 

         Liu Bang established vassal principalities in some areas for the sake of political convenience, eradicated the control in travel, lowered the payment of taxes, let the armies went back from farming, tried to maintain tributary ties and promoted the education to produce a society of intellectuals to serve the state in which the civil service was also initiated. Writing of history became the greatest literary achievement of Han whereas Sima Qian was known as the China’s greatest historian.  Such dynasty also started the used of paper, porcelain, water-powered mills, and as well as water compartments in ships. Liu Bang had a goal of unifying the China but this was only happened until the supremacy of Emperor Wu Di who stiffened the imperial control and totally removed the remaining power of Liu Bang. 

            On this period was the period of the great military expansion where Wu Di expanded its territorial borders up to Vietnam and Korea and pushed the Huns to the south of Gobi who were also the most dangerous enemies of the Chinese. Due to this expansion, the Silk Road was developed. It had such name because merchants/traders used such route in traveling with their silk to the other countries which was the main export especially to the West and also a Chinese monopoly ever since. It ran from Chang’an then to the Hexi Corridor up to Dunhuang where it has three routes which spread all over the Xinjiang Uygur extending as far as Pakistan, India and even Rome. At first, this road was dangerous for the travelers since different nomadic tribes especially the Xiongnu tribe wanted to obtain their valuable commodities. But then in the end, those tribes were defeated by the government’s army. Though different rulers had led the Han dynasty, it had much success with its policies where its economy had flourished and maintained the stability from the obliteration brought by the previous dynasty.

***Taken from my AS 223 Seminar on Asia I essay paper.***

Paulit-ulit?

Sadyang may mga bagay sa mundo na gusto nating makuha dahil talagang gusto natin. May mga bagay naman na gusto natin pero okay lang kung hindi natin makukuha. 'Yung iba naman, okay na okay talaga kahit wala sa atin. Nang dahil sa sobrang dami na mga bagay na nililikha ngayon, dumarating sa punto na wari bang mahirap na maging kuntento kung ano lang talaga ang meron tayo. Eh kesyo gusto ko nito, gusto ko niyan. Ayaw ko nito, ayaw ko niyan. Pero dahil hindi lahat ng bagay ay nagtatagal, may mga pagkakataon na kung ano pa 'yung pinakagusto natin, 'yun pa ang nawawala. Na kung saan minsan, nanlulumo, nalulungkot o nasasaktan pa tayo sa mga nawalang bagay sa atin sa maraming dahilan, makabuluhan man o hindi. Tulad na lamang ng pagkawala ng pinakapaborito na mamahalin mong ballpen. Ang mas masaklap pa, nakita mo nalang isang araw na hawak-hawak na siya ng kinaiinisan mong kaklase. Ang sakit nga naman diba? Ika nga nila, parte na 'yan ng buhay ng tao. Hindi na bago sa pandinig. Para bang mga oldies music na paulit-ulit mo pa ring naririnig hanggang ngayon. 

Subalit kung minsan naman, hindi lang sa mga bagay tayo nagiging sentimental. Dahil sa aminin mo ma't sa hindi, mas masakit kapag tao ang nawala sa iyong buhay. Sumakabilang buhay, umalis, lumayas, nang-iwan o kahit ano pa, mahirap tanggapin ang pagkawala lalo na't malaki ang naging parte ng taong iyan sa buhay mo. Ngunit sabi na naman nila, sa tuwing may umaalis, may dumarating. (Sinabi lang 'yun nila para hindi ka manlumo. LOL.) May dahilan kung bakit sila nawawala sa atin at ito ay para malaman natin kung gaano nga ba sila kahalaga para sa atin. Pero kailangan pa ba nilang mawala para lang malaman natin ang kanilang kahalagahan? Pwede oo, pwede rin hindi. Oo, dahil dapat natin matutunan na walang panghabambuhay na bagay sa mundo. Hindi, dahil may mga tao na sadyang dapat mawala sa buhay para sa ikakabuti natin.

Pero paano kung nawala ang isang tao sa buhay mo at pinagsisihan mo pero bumalik ulit? Kaya lang, pinakawalan mo na naman ulit? Matatawag mo bang katangahan iyon? Pinagsisihan kong mawala siya dati dahil alam ko kung gaano kalaki ang puwang ko sa puso niya, kung gaano niya ako aalagaan, kung gaano niya ako papasayahin at kung gaano niya ako mamahalin ng sobra. Subalit ang masaklap doon ay ni hindi ko man lamang kayang suklian ang mga iyon. Kaya't alam kong hindi mabuti na gagamitin ko lang ang kabaitan niya para lang sa aking kasiyahan. At nagkalaunan, pinakawalan ko siya. Matatawag mo bang katangahan iyon? Sa huli, nagsisi ako. Pinagpalit ko siya sa isang taong hindi ako kayang pahalagahan. Oo, nagkamali ako. Matatawag mo bang katangahan iyon? Nagmahal ako ulit. Gaya ng dati, nasaktan at iniwan rin. Ilang buwan ang lumipas, isang malaking coincidence ang magkita kami ulit. Bumalik din sa dating gawi hanggang dumating sa punto na umamin siya. Pero 'yun 'yung mga panahon na, katulad din ng dati, hindi pa ako nakawala sa nakaraan. Katulad din ng dati, iniwan ko na naman siya. Katulad din ng dati, hindi ko pa rin kayang suklian ang kaya niyang maibigay sa akin. Matatawag mo bang katangahan iyon?

Ganun na siguro 'yun , ano? Na kahit nawala na sa atin, eh kapag bumalik binibitawan pa rin. Hindi dahil hindi natin alam ang kahalagahan nila kundi dahil ayaw nating mas masaktan pa sila. Dahil sa pagmamahal, hindi dapat sarili lang ang iniisip. Hindi dapat makasarili.

Hindi ko na alam kung saang lupalop ng mundo na siya naroroon. Hindi ko na alam kung ano na ang ikinasasaya niya ngayon. Pero kung ano man 'yun, masaya ako para sa kanya. Masaya ako dahil nagawa niya pa rin akong patawarin at palayain. Mahirap man ibalik ulit ang dating pagsasamahan bilang magkaibigan, basta't ang mahalaga wala nalang sanang limutan.

Nalipasang Pag-ibig.

Bagong taon. Year of the Water Snake, sabi nila. Sagot ko sa sarili ko, "Eh ano ngayon?" Pasensya na. Wala lang talaga akong hilig sa mga Chinese beliefs. Dahil para sa akin, ako mismo ang magdadala ng sarili ko kung ano dapat ang magiging kinabukasan ko. "You create your own dreams and it is up to you to make these come true", ika nga nila. At dahil diyan, sa isang araw na desisyon, nagbago ang lahat sa akin.

Nasabi ko sa isang blog ko bago nito na may sadyang mga bagay sa mundo na kailangan nang tapusin. Hindi dahil ayaw na natin o takot tayo pero dahil 'yun ang mas mabuting paraan na magagawa natin. Pero tila nakain ko ang lahat na sinabi ko. Naging null and void yata lahat. Pero hindi ko naman pinagsisihan kung ano man ang kinahinatnan ng desisyon kong ito. Dahil naging masaya ako, eh ano ngayon kung anong iisipin ng iba?

Ilang tiis nalang sana n'un eh bibitaw na talaga sana ako. Sobrang sakit na at hindi na tama ang pahirapan pa ang sarili. Ngunit biglang nag-iba ang ihip ng hangin. Pinuntahan niya ako sa bahay isang gabi. Naisip ko kaagad, "Ayan na naman. Nami-miss na naman niya ako. Tapos babalik na naman kami sa wala." Pero n'ung pagkalabas ko ng  bahay, bigla nalang niya ako niyakap ng mahigpit at sinabing bakit ang hirap ko raw limutin. Napatawa ako, "Nasabi mo lang 'yan dahil na-miss mo ako. Dahil iniiwasan na kita." Maya-maya, biglang nagbago ang tono ng pananalita niya hanggang sa inamin niyang gusto niyang ibalik ang aming pinagsamahan. Hindi ko maintindihan ang aking mga nararamdaman sa mga oras na iyon. Parang biglang sumaya na naguguluhan na naiinis na ewan. Tinitigan ko lang ang kanyang mga mata at biglang napaisip, siyam na buwan ang nakakaraan, ano na kaya kami ngayon kung hindi kami nag-break up n'un? 

Binigyan ko siya ng mga kondisyon bago siya makipagbalikan sa akin. Isa na dun ang tapusin muna ang namamagitan sa kanila ng kaibigan niya. Sabihin niya dapat sa kanya kung ano 'yung naging desisyon niya para hindi na siya umasa pa. "Kung hindi mo kayang tapusin, 'wag ka nang makipagkita sa akin. Simpleng usapan lang." Kaya't kinabukasan, kinausap niya agad at nagkaayos din. Nasabi niya sa akin kung gaano nasaktan 'yung babae. Alam ko, dahil babae rin ako. Pero dapat hindi siya umasa lalo na't kaibigan pa lang sila. 'Yun 'yung dahilan ko kung bakit ko tinext ang babae. Para ipaalam sa kanya na huwag magpadalos-dalos dahil may topak ang ex ko at hindi pa nakakamove-on. Ngunit tila ayaw niyang makinig at sa halip, naisip pa siguro niyang napaka-bitter ko dahil hindi ko matanggap na nakikipag-fling sa kanya ang ex ko. Nakow! Kay tagal-tagal ko nang natanggap sa sarili ko ang pagkakaroon niya ng ibang babae kahit hindi pa rin niya ako kayang bitawan. Ayan tuloy, nakapagbitaw ang babaeng 'yun ng mga salitang nagpapahiwatig na wala nang matinong mga lalaki sa mundo. Pero teka, tanong ko lang, paano mo naman nasabi 'yan eh nasubukan mo na ba lahat ng mga lalaki sa mundo? Tiyak na magagalit si Ginoong Ramon Bautista niyan. HAHA! Siya pa naman ang pumupukaw sa mga utak ng mga lalaki kung paano maging mga mabubuting maginoo para sa mga kababaihan.

Balik sa punto ng pinag-uusapan. Ayan na. Nagkabalikan na kami. N'ung una medyo nag-aadjust pa pero kinalaunan, naayos din sa kabila ng ibang mga bagay na hindi na kaya pang ibalik. Hindi na kaya pang ibalik dahil nalipasan na. Dahil naging parte na siya ng nakaraan. Dahil... Siguro... Hanggang doon na lang ang mga bagay na iyon at hindi na maibabalik pa sa kasalukuyan. Aaminin ko na mahirap iwanan ang mga bagay na 'yun lalo na't hinahanap-hanap ko pa rin paminsan-minsan, umaasa na baka bukas, sa susunod na araw o balang araw, babalik din ang mga iyon na sana'y mas magpapatatag ng aming pagsasamahan kahit alam kong hindi ito panghabangbuhay. ###