The swift netizen defense of alleged Yolanda looters establishes that violence is permissible in the name of survival. But, we have to ask, survival under what conditions? Survival according to whose standards?
The answer to the first seems to be that violence is permissible under conditions over which people have no control, such as natural disasters.
This contributed photo from Tacloban City shows people carting off goods from Robinson’s Mall last Monday in plain sight of an armed security guard who could only watch . Chaos and hunger has stricken this city struck by Typhoon Yolanda last Friday, as no clear system has been implemented to carry off the dead and take care of the many survivors. (Photo contributed by Arthur Yap)
