For more than twenty years since the Philippines ratified its membership at the World Trade Organization (WTO) the already backward Philippine agricultural economy suffered more and more defeats.
The Mamasapano clash on January 25, 2015 between the Philippine National Police Special Action Force commandos and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (allegedly joined by Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and private armies) marks another historic botch in the country.
While waiting for the Board of Inquiry to complete their investigation of the Mamasapano tragedy, it may be good to train our eyes on the communities where cornfields had been turned into battlegrounds.
With the rigmarole in the testimonies of the resource persons in the ongoing Senate hearing on the Mamasapano, it is doubtful if it can be relied upon as an avenue in the search for truth.
Women religious in Mindanao have been in the forefront of the causes the marginalized, deprived, exploited and oppressed sectors of the society have been fighting for.