The Doctrine of Non-Violence as an aid to Philippines’ National Crises

Synthesis paper

Claire Gwyneth C. Cantuba and Geneca Beatrice Godisan

College of Social Sciences and Philosophy - Philosophy Department

Bicol University

Modern Asian Thoughts

Mr. Jeson D. Balingbing

December 20, 2021

As the time changes, and the world progresses into a more advanced state of development, the

attitude of people towards life and reality changes too. In these current times, people of different

societies are growing more and more tired each day of the various forms of injustices that are

observed and experienced on a daily basis, people have become more vocal and aggressive in

addressing such problems. The Philippines, is one of the nations that are most controversial, for

the reason being that injustice is rampant and apparent, the war on drugs, extra judicial killings,

lack of government accountability, corruption, and so on. In resolving problems of the likes,

Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.—during their time of fighting for their people’s

freedom and rights—served as great examples in dealing with it through non-violence and the

values that it carries and teaches people, of different cultures and orientation. This academic

paper—rooted in the teachings and principles of Gandhi and King—intends to provide

explanations as to how relevant the doctrine of non-violence is in modern times, and how it can

serve as a guiding principle for the Filipino people to battle social and political injustices in a

manner that wouldn’t add up to the nation’s already existing disputes.

The doctrine of Non-Violence in its general sense is the personal attitude and practice of

not allowing oneself to cause any form of harm to others and to the self, no matter what the

circumstances are. The said doctrine does not only promote the absence of physical violence and

harm, it also gives great emphasis on spiritual non-violence, to put it in another way, this

doctrine is urging individuals not to engage into harmful activities towards other people, and at

the same

time to refuse to hate, build anger, and carry grudges to those who an individual considers his/her

enemy. The father of Non-Violence is Mahatma Gandhi, an Indian lawyer who made use of non-

violence as his primary virtue to have led his nation to freedom against the British colonizers in

1974. But Gandhi isn’t the only well-known man who made use of this principle. Another noble

man who utilized non-violent tactics to initiate a civil rights movement is none other than Martin

Luther King Jr. himself. King was a social activist who fought for the rights of the African

Americans who were poorly treated during those times (1950s-1960s). King did so by awakening

their spirits to fight for their rights, by setting an example, and by leading his followers to march

as an act of protest even though they were attacked by guards with tear gas and the likes to stop

and contain them, but they were determined to press their message across. They went on another

march hoping for a different outcome and instead of fighting back to the attacks, they kneeled

down and prayed instead, which perfectly demonstrated that it is not war nor fights that they

want, but only equality and to be given what is rightful for them and for the black community.

This is all because, both for Gandhi and King, Non-Violence is a way of life for courageous
people, what is braver than engaging into physical violence and causing harm to others in order

to be superior, is one’s resistance to evil and harm. The doctrine of Non-Violence does not enable

people to turn their backs against one another, it only seeks to battle and defeat injustice, not

people. A principle that is so beautiful and inspiring yet very challenging to execute, given the

fact that mankind is always fighting for a higher spot against one another. There is always a

battle for superiority. But this is not the point of non-violent teachings.

With these said, the said doctrine is to be used as an aid for analyzing the current

problems of the Philippines, and in what areas can the doctrine be of benefit for the nation and

for the people. This academic paper will evaluate how relevant the doctrine of non-violence is to

the Philippines’ current crises like the uproar of the Filipino people against the government

injustices, the present global health crisis, and the underlying questions against the presidential

candidates, and so on. The importance of non-violence will be laid out in this paper with the

inclusion of Gandhi and King’s non-violent tactics and teachings, to function as supporting ideas

and claims.

The Philippines’ societal and political injustices and crises

The Philippines in its current and past administrations have been prone to protests, online

uproars, harsh criticisms, and so on. The reason being, that all kinds of injustices are rampant and

very visible, especially felt by the less fortunate ones, the ones who are in the “laylayan ng

lipunan”. The Filipino people have not had experienced a good governance for a long time now

and it shows, the people are becoming more and more sick of all of this. Democracy isn’t felt
anymore, added with the passing of the Anti-Terror Law, the practice in the freedom of speech

and expression is being actively limited for it could be labeled as an act of terrorism nowadays,

and could be seen as a threat for the government, which is condemned by the Filipinos, activists,

or not. The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) continuously oppose the current

administration for the said law, they are fighting for the voices of the Filipino people that are to

be silenced once this law has been strictly implemented. The rights of the people to speak up and

be heard is gradually being taken away, through this law. Hence, the continuous battle for

activism for it not to be considered as an act of terrorism. On the other hand, the Philippine

National Police, assured the Filipino people to worry less for they will not abuse the power that

is to be given to them through the implementation of Anti-Terror Law. The civil and political

rights of the people will still be preserved, according to the Police. The Filipino people are

skeptical with this, in view of the fact that they are aware of how filthy our justice system is in

the past decades, it is quite challenging to trust in the words of those who are part of the broken

system.

The Filipino people lose confidence in the integrity of the PNP because of the Extra

Judicial Killings that are yet to be solved and brought justice upon, until now. Many lives were

taken unjustly for such petty accusations, all because of the war on drugs that was spearheaded

by the President himself, Mr. Rodrigo Duterte. He has given a great amount of funds to the PNP

and ordered each one of them to work extra hard to catch and shoot anyone who is inside the

watchlist. What’s puzzling is the fact that only those who are poor are dying, however, the drug

lords, the people in the watch list with power and authority, and the master minds behind the

drug operations inside the country are all untouched and free. A matter of fact that is very
sickening to think about. And this is only the surface of this story, there are a lot of things that are

hidden from the Filipino people, a lot of unjust things that the society doesn’t know about.

Subsequently, the Philippines suffered a lot during the first strike of the pandemic inside

the country, the whole nation’s economy badly deteriorated. To add, the health funds were poorly

distributed and used, and it cost the Filipino people their lives and of their loved ones. The

Covid-19 situation in the Philippines exposed all the broken systems inside the country and

exposed those who are abusing their power, and those who took the money out of the citizens’

pockets and made use of it for their own good. The people are sick of it. This coming presidential

election in 2022, the people, especially the youth are looking for another chance to redeem the

country in its current mediocre state by choosing a good leader. The goal is to choose someone

with integrity and a concrete plan for the health crisis and other societal issues that the said

nation is currently facing, to free the people from continuous bad governance. However, there are

still questionable candidates who are aiming for the position of President, and this is not a good

sign. People with tax evasion cases, corruption cases, people who know nothing about leading a

country, people who are puppets and have no voice, and so on. The challenge now lies, in hoping

that the Filipino people can finally open their eyes to these threats to the Philippine government,

and to not let them prevail for the injustices that have been mentioned will only pester the

country over and over again once they step in the system. Note that these are only one of the

many injustices that the people of the Philippines face in day-to-day life, and there are many that

are still aren’t talked about much or reported. Only showing what harsh reality the Filipino

people encounter because of being mishandled and misled by the wrong people, The Filipinos
are victims of a broken and a filthy system. It is only through the Filipino people and their

choices as well, that this fate of theirs and of the nation could be changed for a better future.

The Non-Violent principle of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.

Mahatma Gandhi, did not only made use of non-violence in his teachings to awaken the

spirits of his people so that they may be able to find courage in not engaging into evil acts, but he

also used this doctrine as his main philosophy and way of life. However, Gandhi isn’t the only

person who made use of the application of this doctrine, therefore, he did not invent it, it was

existent even before him. On the other hand, Gandhi was called the father of Non-Violence

because according to authors and writers like Mark Shepard and Krishna Kripalani, who studied

non-violence, Gandhi was the one who took it to another level of usage, a level no one has

achieved/reached before. Gandhi took the principle of non-violence as being a personal practice

into the lane of social and political movement. Gandhi considers a person who truly practice non-

violence as someone who is blessed among those who take part in such horrendous acts. For him,

there are two types of violence namely: Passive and Physical violence. Passive violence are

emotions of hate that people carry in their hearts against other people that would eventually

escalate into physical violence—which are wrongful acts that an individual performs in order to

cause harm to his/her fellowmen, as well as to the self. For Gandhi, the principle of “ Ahimsa” or

non-violence is the greatest of all that was granted to man, it is what he considers the value that

is mightier that sword, a source of power that could lead each nation to democracy.
 Like Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. highly believed in the practice of non-violence as

well. According to King, “We adopt the means of nonviolence because our end is a community at

peace with itself. We will try to persuade with our words, but if our words fail, we will try to

persuade with our acts.”, and he did so by leading his followers during their fight for civil and

political rights in 1950s-1960s. He made use of non-violence as his philosophy and way of life

too. He practiced this during the civil rights movement, and urged his followers to engage into

non-violent tactics together with him. Hence, demonstrating that non-violence is the greatest

form of protest, even when other people are threatening their lives. King also provided six

guiding principles of non-violence which are what follows: Non-Violence is a way of life for

courageous people. Non-Violence seeks to win friendship and understanding. Non-Violence

seeks to defeat injustice, not people. Non-Violence holds that suffering can educate and

transform. Non-Violence chooses love instead of hate. Non-Violence believes that the universe is

on the side of justice. All of these are driven by King’s idea that peace cannot be achieved

through violent acts, and by adding fuel to the fire. Instead, one must promote and uphold the

virtue of love, to attain a peaceful and a harmonious society. Unfortunately, Martin Luther King

Jr. died tragically on 1968, due to assassination, but his legacy prevailed and is still alive up until

now.

Either of the two—Gandhi and King believed that non-violence isn’t for the weak nor for

the coward, it is a societal practice and only those who are strong by heart could fully understand

and internalize it. However, this does not mean that one shouldn’t fight back in situations of great

danger and threat, one must do so, but with the intent of saving and protecting oneself and of
making peace and ammends, not with the reason being to pay back and inflict pain among

his/her attacker just because. It is with great emphasis that these two noble men have given

insistence on violence as something that only caters hate inside a community, turning people

against each other instead of urging them to unite. Something that is against both of their

teachings and way of life. Both Gandhi and King firmly held that violence does not and will

never result to permanent peace, it only adds up to the already existing conflict. The two of them

died maintaining their cause and teachings, which are of great help even until now, functioning

as guiding principles of democratic societies, being used as a habitual practice of those who are

brave enough.

Non-Violence as a solution

To assert, non-violence can be used as an aid for the current crises that the Philippines is

facing. The problem of various injustices in the country can be addressed in a manner that no one

would ever get hurt, and the voices of the people could be heard. This could be done through

peaceful protests, peace talks, writing formal letters of complaint, non-violent conversations, and

the likes. There can only be peace if two parties are willingly cooperating in these non-violent

ways of resolving a problem. One must not initiate attacks and fights for it can only worsen the

already bad situation and circumstance, therefore, the it is the government that must initiate such.

Society cannot heal if there is always bloodshed and hatred. A conflict cannot be solved by

adding another conflict. It can only be controlled by looking at situations objectively with a clear

mind, assessing what needs to be done and addressed, and getting the message across in an
unaggressive manner. But it doesn’t mean that one must be passive in doing so, one must always

be firm in fighting for one’s belief, even if it is done in the simplest way possible. Non-violence

is not a weapon that inflicts pain and suffering, it is not a weapon of destruction. Instead, it is a

weapon that inspires people, a weapon that teaches and promotes love over hate. The role of the

Philippine government in this is to take part, and to set a great example for the people that they

have authority upon, the administration must strictly administer peace and justice, so that the

people could trust in them again, and war as well as fights among societal parties could be

minimized. If this is not yet to be realized, then it is only fitting to replace the corrupt ones in

position with the good ones, hence voting wisely in the upcoming election, and using the power

that each one of the people have.

Non-Violence could be an aid for the Filipinos’ never-ending struggle against various

kinds of injustices. Students can participate in such thing too, they can research and be aware of

the current issues inside their community so that they may be able to have an open eye in every

situation, and to exclude themselves in the mediocracy that have widespread. Students, and

people who do not want to participate in protests, could also make use of their knowledge and

skills to ignite and awaken the spirits of their fellow Filipinos, that they may be aware too. This

could be done through writing, publicly speaking about issues that matter, illustrating the effects

of injustices, and using social media as a platform for these messages to be relayed and for the

voices of those unheard to be recognized. Each individual must always bear in mind the

importance of their voices and talents, to be used in the most rightful way possible, in order to

initiate a positive change inside the society, as well as to inspire other people to take part in the

same cause. By doing so, each one is doing a favor those who have lost their lives, and have
suffered due to injustice and bad governance, so that they may be able to receive the justice that

they deserve in the first place. The Filipino people should not let them die and suffer in vain,

rather, all should act as the image and source of hope for those who cannot fight and voice out on

their own. Peace and justice can be achieved without violence, hate, and pain. This is not

impossible, and it has been proven already.

Conclusion

All things considered, it is with great importance to take into consideration non-violent

acts at all times, especially in times of conflict and disagreements against other people. One must

not make violence as one’s final resort in resolving problems. Given the ideas, guiding

principles, and teachings of Gandhi and King, one must learn by heart the doctrine of non-

violence for it solely begins in the self, and in an individual’s character. Non-Violence is a

personal practice and a continuous act of discipline, to not let oneself engage into activities that

may cause any form of harm, that one would only regret in the long run. Looking at the current

situation of the Philippines right now, in its most vulnerable state, the Philippines, could not

afford another conflict, or extra disputes. What the nation needs is healing and proper

cooperation of the Filipino people, to act together, as one, and not as a scattered race turned

against each other. Violence will never equate to attaining peace, it would only worsen situations

that people choose to find solutions to, it’s like adding more pain to a community that is already

hurting. Violence will never be the answer, and it shouldn’t be.

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