ANALYSIS OF THE IGLESIA NI CRISTO DEMONSTRATION

RELIGIOUS, PHILSOSOPHICAL AND LEGAL BASIS? RESULT?

(Note: First posted September 4.  4 days after the end of the demonstration. Edited September 5, 2015)

This essay is anti-Iglesia ni Cristo, to INC readers, you have my permission to hate.  It doesn’t matter.  At the end of the day, reflect on what I had to say.  Much of what I wrote is based on my observations and through careful study of the law so you may have chance to cleanse your image before your countrymen.

(source: Catholic defender blog)

It is an understatement to say that when the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) massed in front of the Department of Justice building in Padre Faura on August 27 in order to demonstrate against what they thought was religious persecution, we were all caught off guard.  Then by the afternoon of August 28, we see that they have moved their rally to the busy thoroughfare of EDSA.  This truly had analysts, the press and politicians stumped.  

The backlash from social media was tremendous.  The sect was vilified by most netizens who had suffered the inconvenience of the long-weekend “Carmaggedon”.

This begs so many questions.  What were the INC trying to achieve?

When does religion end and politics begin?  It seems that the homegrown sect Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) does not know the boundaries either.

Merits of the argument for the separation of Church and State are easily dispensed with

I've been monitoring developments regarding this INC protest rally and so far none of the arguments they have posted on social media or what they have been chanting on the streets are compelling or on point. The Church leadership is very weak intellectually and rely only on the "Unity" it has demanded from its members.

From the very first argument, on the Separation of Church and State, it is clear that the DOJ investigation that triggered the protest never affected the member's religious freedom. It is completely not on point.

The claim that government should focus on Mamasapano, DAP, Yolanda, etc. only serve to muddle the issue and to garner sympathy as well as discredit the government. To be fair to Secretary Leila de Lima and to Samson, his act of going straight to the head of the DOJ is justified. The INC is a very influential sect, at the grassroots, they possess thugs and goons ready to intimidate lowly prosecutors--its very hard to get a criminal case filed if it involves the an INC member, all the more if the suspect is the Sanggunian itself. I have seen this happen personally and I'm sure that many have experienced their mafia-like way of doing things, so going to the Prosecutor's Office simply isn't enough. The Philippine Daily Inquirer editorial staff seems to agree:

But it needs to be said; precisely because the church is an influential institution, the Samson family was justified in filing the case with De Lima’s office herself, not with a local prosecutor. There is nothing unusual about this arrangement; it happens all the time. Indeed, the INC has been known to go straight to the DOJ on certain occasions, rather than to, say, the prosecutors’ office in Quezon City where its headquarters is located. No abuse of discretion; no unusual attention. It was as it should be.

Comparison to the Black Nazarene and the Papal Visit aren't on point either. These events are proper exercises of religious freedom, and in the case of the Papal visit, it may also be treated as the visit from the head of a foreign government. From a planning and execution standpoint, permits and detours had been planned well in advance giving commuters a chance to find alternate routes and be appraised of the situation.

The INC have only succeeded where they have not on the strength of their beliefs, but on the strength of their 2 million voters, the wealth of their church which could sustain moving thousands from the provinces (money which could have been better used in missionary and charitable activity) and the general low intelligence and blind allegiance of its members.

Columnist Bobi Tiglao opined that the reason why the DOJ is investigating the members of INC’s Sanggunian is because the INC has refused to support Mar. Roxas’ bid for Presidency. If this is the case then, this whole demonstration was mere Political Zarzuela.  Was freedom of religion merely invoked as an afterthought?  An attempt to pull the heartstrings of the emotional and religious Filipino?  It seems that the majority has seen through the artifice.  

The political bandwagon

A number of big name politicos have decided to place their bets on this crisis, namely;

VP Jejomar Binay - “[A] clear act of harassment and interference from the administration . . . Religious freedom is guaranteed by our Constitution. Yet the administration chose to trample on this sacred right. What we are seeing are people fighting for their faith.”

It seems that our dear Vice President and lord of Makati has been reading conspiracy theories.  Be that as it may, prosecution for crimes does not equal persecution of religion.

Sen. Grace Poe - “Huwag nating mamaliitin ang importansya ng relihiyon . . . Para sa akin, ang mga tao na yan, ang dinedepensahan nila ay ang kanilang paniniwala. Nirerespeto natin 'yan at kailangan ay pangalagaan din ang kanilang mga karapatan”

To be fair to Grace Poe and to Jejomar, they do have a point.  Everyone has a right to free speech.  Most important of this is political free speech.  As held in Reyes vs. Bagatsing:

Free speech and peaceable assembly, along with the other intellectual freedoms, are highly ranked in our scheme of constitutional values. It cannot be too strongly stressed that on the judiciary, — even more so than on the other departments — rests the grave and delicate responsibility of assuring respect for and deference to such preferred rights. No verbal formula, no sanctifying phrase can, of course, dispense with what has been so felicitiously termed by Justice Holmes "as the sovereign prerogative of judgment." Nonetheless, the presumption must be to incline the weight of the scales of justice on the side of such rights, enjoying as they do precedence and primacy.

It seems that what riled people up is the seeming favoritism that was given to the INC.  The feeling that the government was not working for the common good and that the ordinary “mamamayan” was left out again.  In this case, it seems that these statements made by Sen. Grace Poe and Jejomar, while legally correct, came out as callous and insincere.

It also comes out as ironic that we must defend the right of the INC to free speech and demonstration when the INC itself does not grant the same right to its members.

Sen. Bongbong Marcos - “For justice to triumph, the DOJ must not only be impartial in its procedure and ruling; like Caesar's wife, it must also be seen as being fair to all . . . The DOJ's handling of the case leaves much to be desired. Instead of allowing the legal process to take its course, DOJ secretary Leila de Lima immediately held a press con to discuss the merits of the case. This created the impression, rightly or wrongly, of undue interest in the case.”

I expected more from you Senator Bongbong to be honest.  Though I admit that you have a point.  This war of the Zombies (see below) was a war to win the hearts and minds of the Filipinos.  It seems however that where you and the INC saw de Lima taking undue interest in the case, the majority became indignant at the self-righteous, hypocritical and iskwater act of the INC in holding the demonstration.

Secretary Mar Roxas - “While all citizens have the right to be heard and to peaceful assembly, the exercise of these rights cannot impinge on the rights of others or cause inconvenience to anyone.”

His message however was diluted by his instruction to the police to exercise maximum tolerance.

All in all, these politicians have made valid arguments.  The problem however is that the anger of the majority was running at an all-time high such that those caught defending the INC received criticism.  To be fair, the standard operating procedure of the government, when it comes to rallies from religious groups is to treat the group with kids gloves.  The practice is indeed different for militant groups who will be sprayed with water the moment they get too rowdy.  I suppose that it has to do with the high regard Filipinos traditionally place on religion.

War of the Zombies

Here, two zombie groups clashed.  On one side were the Manalo Cult Zombies: urban and provincial poor were told by their leaders to troop over to EDSA in order to defend their religion.  These people may be likened to zombies because of their seemingly blind allegiance and obedience to their leaders, many of whom, when interviewed, could not explain the reason for their demonstration.

Aftermath

The INC dispersed on August 31, Monday.  They claimed victory and their spokesperson claimed that they had come to an agreement and understanding with the government.  

The lack of details regarding this agreement has troubled the citizens, with President Noynoy Aquino once again being accused of secret negotiations.  The Palace has denied the existence of any agreement.

The victory claimed by the INC is a hollow one.  Its ability to actually deliver the bloc vote has been questioned.  Its ability to muster its members to a cause is doubted.  Reports stated that members of the INC who were against the rally have received physical threats and/or were threatened with expulsion.  It is quite possible that their flock has been diminished after this ill-advised demonstration.

The below quotation possibly sums up our impression of the demonstration:

Samson’s counsel, Atty. Trixie Cruz-Angeles, said the rally reeks of “irrationality and non-responsiveness” since it happened at the heels of the former minister’s decision to file a case against Santos and the rest of the Sanggunian, a council of ranking church officials, for illegal detention.

“Instead of answering the allegations at preliminary investigation, they immediately call out the Department of Justice officials as being biased, based solely on their perception that the mere docketing of the case at the main office is already proof of said ‘selective justice.’ And instead of seeking recourse with the courts, they resort to what they think will be the equivalent of public pressure,”

The political ramifications are also immense.  VP Binay and Sen. Grace Poe were both widely panned for their defense of the sect.  The government of Noynoy Aquino was once again perceived as “inutil” for want of speedy resolution of the crisis.  A movement of “reverse block voting” also seems to be brewing whereby politicians endorsed or who have sought endorsement from the INC will be boycotted.  Will this further dilute the INC’s political power?

The lesson here people is to exercise your right to suffrage properly.  And one thing's for sure, the practice of block voting must be stopped.