Justice for SAF 44 marchers: Why sabotage our right to grieve?

Photo by Julliane Love de Jesus/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines – Why are we not allowed to grieve?

Activist priest Fr. Robert Reyes posed this stinging question in his homily in the Mass after the indignation walk for justice for 44 slain policemen Sunday.

Before the sympathy walk of police academy alumni and families of the fallen policemen kicked off Sunday morning, it went through “a lot of obstacles.”

The sudden revocation of the event’s permits and dissuasion from the higher ups did not prevent retired and active policemen and families to continue the march.

From the expected 1,000 participants in the 44-kilometer walk from Dasmariñas, Cavite to Claret School in Diliman, Quezon City, Reyes said they were reduced to 13.

Reyes said the 1,000 people supposedly consisted of PNPA cadets and policemen in active service.

“We were reduced to almost 95-percent. Instead of a thousand runners from Dasmariñas to Crame, there were only 10 of us. Nine from the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology and two to three police [officers] in bikes, so 13,” he said during his homily at the concluding Mass in Claret School.

“There’s nothing wrong about grieving and definitely nothing wrong about sharing the grief of those who are deeply hurt and that’s what we wanted to do. No more, no less. No political statement about resign or oust, nothing,” he said, raising his voice.

Days before the event, the Quezon City local government withdrew the permit to use the Quezon Memorial Circle grounds because of “security risks” as “left leaning groups may interact and mix themselves with the legitimate rallyists.”

Last Friday, PNPAAAI Camp Crame chapter president Senior Superintendent Jerome Baxinela sent out a text message urging PNPA officers in the field to “desist from joining the march.”

On Saturday, the Philippine National Police revoked the permit to use the grandstand in Camp Crame for the marchers’ rendezvous before supposedly marching to Quezon Memorial Circle. The organizers then changed the last stop of the march at Claret School.

“Whoever issued the warning that you better not join or else… I ask that simple question, what’s wrong about grieving? What’s wrong about sharing the grief of others. Please ask yourself what’s wrong perhaps not with us, but with you,” he said.

Reyes, also dubbed the “running priest,” discussed the “cleansing of the temple” gospel, which was about Jesus who was angered upon seeing moneychangers buying and selling animals for sacrifice inside the sacred place,

Likening the situation to the gospel, Reyes then asked, “Are you angry?” to the crowd thrice, to which the marchers responded with a loud “yes!”

However, it was deemed successful by the organizers, the PNP Alumni Association Inc.

“Despite many obstacles, the (sympathy walk) was successful and peaceful as planned,” said PNPAAAI chairman retired general Tomas Rentoy III in a press briefing after the Mass.

“Before we announced the march, we’ve already secured permits from the Quezon City Hall, MMDA (Metropolitan Manila Development Authority), and Camp Crame to use the grandstand as our assembly area. But we lost our permits one by one. We don’t know why,” Rentoy said.