Faces of the news

Fr. Chito Soganub

The name of Fr. Teresito Soganub, the vicar general of Marawi City, first appeared in the news following the siege of Marawi City, when he was reported to be among those taken from the cathedral by the Islamic State-inspired Maute group on May 23, the day the local terror group took over sections of the city. Eight days later, an undated video circulated online, showing a black-clad, bearded man appealing to President Duterte to stop the military operations in Marawi for the sake of over a hundred hostages with him. An ensuing silence after that led people to speculate whether he was dead or alive. Until last weekend when a smiling Fr. Soganub faced the media, assuring people he was in good health and asking them to pray for him. A bishop said Fr. Soganub escaped from his captors. But the military said he was rescued.

Karina David

When like-minded personalities launched #TindigPilipinas to protest against President Duterte’s draconian policies, the former Civil Service Commission chair was among the recognizable faces. “We lay the wrongdoings we see around us on the doorstep of the President,” the group said during last Monday’s launch at Club Filipino in San Juan. “We must overcome fear and apathy. We must summon our heritage of courage.” Karina David, one of its conveners, said #Tindig was a “coalition of coalitions” that sought to stop the country’s spiral into “degradation,” no thanks to Mr. Duterte’s policies. The group, which counts senators, representatives, former Cabinet officials and activists among its members, joined nationwide protests marking the 45th anniversary of Ferdinand Marcos’ declaration of martial law last Thursday.

Carmina Castillo

It was an uneventful weekend until Carmina Castillo got an anonymous text informing them that their son, Horacio III, or Atio, had been brought to Chinese General Hospital in Manila. Something was amiss. Forthwith, Carmina and her husband Horacio Jr. drove to the hospital past Sunday midnight only to find their 22-year-old son, a law freshman at University of Santo Tomas (UST), dead. He died of massive heart attack from extreme violence; his arms were red from beating. On Saturday morning, he informed them that he was attending the overnight welcoming ceremony of Aegis Juris fraternity at UST, and assured them he’d be back home the next day in time for the early morning Mass. It was a tragic end for the promising student leader. “We took good care of him and they beat him up just like that,” Carmina said.

Nilo Divina

Amid public backlash over Horacio Castillo III’s death from alleged hazing, UST College of Law dean Nilo Divina suspended the officers and members of Aegis Juris fraternity, of which he is a prominent member, and barred them from entering the campus of the Faculty of Civil Law. When he visited Atio’s wake, he promised to his parents the suspects would face the consequences. He had since lifted his suspension order against the fraternity members to ensure their cooperation with the investigators. But one of them flew out of the country ahead of the issuance of a lookout bulletin for them. Accompanied by the dean, John Paul Solano, one of the prime suspects, on Friday appeared before Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who is opening an inquiry into the killing this week. What will Divina do next to ensure justice for Atio?

Aung San Suu Kyi

The Myanmar leader has faced criticism over her silence on the abuses faced by the Rohingya Muslim minority in the troubled Rakhine State. When the Nobel peace laureate finally broke her silence, she wasn’t spared more criticism. She condemned “unlawful violence” and vowed that action would be taken against people who violated human rights, but was silent on the military operations against Rohingya. It was her first address since attacks by Rohingya insurgents on Aug. 25 triggered a military response that has sent more than 410,000 fleeing into neighboring Bangladesh. Amnesty International criticized her and her government for “burying their heads in the sand” over the violence that had swept Rakhine. “Her speech amounted to little more than a mix of untruths and victim blaming,” it said.

Cielo Honasan

After completing a sweep of the sprint golds in the Asean Para Games in Kuala Lumpur, Cielo Honasan couldn’t help but cry. “I just couldn’t control my emotions, that’s why I cried,” said Honasan as she turned into the newest poster girl of Filipino differently abled athletes. A polio victim who was discovered competing in the regular events of Palarong Pambansa, Honasan first ruled the 200-meter T44 in dominating fashion (28.51 seconds). The 15-year-old Zambales native nailed the century dash gold next (13.96 seconds), then capped her smashing debut with another win in the 400-meter T44/T45 race (63.35 seconds). “My dream is to compete and win here and I’m glad I got the chance to fulfill it,” said Honasan, who is set to receive P150,000 for each gold she won as an incentive mandated by law.