if you haven't read the 1st part yet please click here!
Divided we Fall
The Americans have given the Filipino Revolutionaries a taste of Caesar’s divide et impera, or the divide and rule strategy. Although the Philippines have won its battle against America, what this strategy have left us and made us realize was truly devastating. But it has its roots long before the colonizers.
The Philippines is an Archipelago composed of more than seven-thousand islands and is home to more than a hundred indigenous and ethno-linguistic groups. Before the Spaniards came, Muslim raiders called Moros were raiding the Visayan as well islands. Visayans have also been raiding other barangays and have extended their reach up to China where Fukien’s people have told stories of tattooed raiders who were fierce and horrible. The Philippines was not yet a Nation-State instead, the Philippines was divided into factions which center on families and alliances with trading partners and neighbors. Given this set up, it is not impossible to successfully tear the islands apart from the inside.
When the Spaniards came, they gifted the Islands its name, its central government and its faith (at least half of the Islands) still the colonizer faced a strong and unyielding enemy and that was the Moros. The Muslim raiders of the South who remained unconquered and were bravely steadfast with their faith. For three centuries, this has been the scourge of Spain in these Islands. But it was not all for in the conquered regions of Luzon and the Visayas, the ethno-linguistic groups who had converted to Catholicism saw the irony of the Spanish Rule – that they preached God, but have brought the devil of the friars with them to torment the natives. Thus, the struggle against Spain ensued. Perhaps there was a weakening of the Spanish rule (which can be traced on the History books) that the rule to the Philippines was ceded to America. Perhaps the Spaniards saw the division of the Filipinos as potential and have also utilized it in some way leading to results (which can be traced on History books) in order to restore their power but have instead chosen the other way around since the Philippines was a growing imp that burdened Spain. Then the Americans came.
When the Americans came, they saw through this. They saw through the division and they banked on the divide and conquer strategy. Since there were factions among the revolutionaries, they pitted them at each other and defeated them with cunning and fuming the hatred they have against ‘other’ Revolutionaries who were not part of their ‘ethno-linguistic group’. And there remained hatreds up until now.
In the Philippines, there has been an ethnic prejudice among the Filipinos. Nation itself is being debated with some arguing that the Archipelago of the Philippines is one country. However, some say no because the definition of a nation is that it must be ‘of one common language, culture and heritage’ and that because the Philippines is composed of people with different languages, it should be branded as a country with many nations. And why insist on this? Because these people who advocate a country of many nations have experienced oppression both in politics and culture. Some highest leaders of the country still come from a single island and there is no equal representation. This is what aches some of those coming from the regions. So, what is its relation to the Apocalypse FMA and Identity?
A lot of stories were told about the Old Filipino Masters teaching only friends and family and not other people. Perhaps there were insecurities which were related to the ‘tribalism’ of the natives which they have inherited through time. Why then were the foreigners allowed then? Because the foreigners where viewed as the powerful, in case of the Americans, they were the ones who won the war, therefore, they were friends. However, because of the centuries suppressed thought that there are other ethno-linguistic groups looming and that they can be potential threats, teaching the art to others should then be prohibited. Therefore, if this mentality is reinforced and strengthened, it could be detrimental to the survival of the Filipino identity in FMA because we refuse to share within our fellow Filipinos regardless of their origins.
Does this mean that we should eradicate these groups? What should be eradicated is the backward mentality. The ethnic and ethno-linguistic groups are there and it is a crime to eradicate their culture, because, in the spirit of learning, these groups like the Warays, Cebuanos, Manobos, Panay-Bukidnon and Mamanwas have their own Martial Culture and are potential wells of knowledge waiting to be discovered. We should own it, clinging to the notion that, respect should be paid back appropriately.
If I fall, Others will go with me
I have discussed the culture of Crab Mentality in another post but I will re-discuss it here. Filipinos have this dangerous practice of being jealous of successful neighbors or acquaintances. It is an attitude of some Filipinos wherein if their neighbor, or fellow, succeeds in something, they get an itch to grab this fellow down - no matter what that means, usually through gossip. This is why in the not so long ago, some old masters refused or were reluctant to show the world their skills or to teach, because, somebody might be plotting behind their backs and could escalate from teases, tests, until the result is death and it was dangerous.
This mentality also is evident in some communities and have produced hostilities. This kind of mentality I think is also tied to the culture of dividedness which was discussed above because, as you will notice, those who are not really competent will stick their butts into powerful institutions in order to gain better grounding and will push others down just so they could be the ones to rule. In some Filipino Martial Arts practitioners this manifest through giving samples to students with the practices of other groups and coupling it with derogatory remarks stating that the other groups’ techniques are not as effective as theirs. This is also a way to gain more practitioners. With the indoctrination in place, hate then comes as a side effect.
When this is the atmosphere that the FMA Community cultivates, what then could become of the future? Will the youth be interested with these squabbles? If they did grow interest is it a good example to emulate? And if they continue with this, will the Filipino in the FMA survive, or will it be up to the more diplomatic foreigners?
Crab Mentality seeps into the whole of Filipino Culture. Let the FMA be an aegis of honor which would drive this menace away.
How We Package our Martial Art
In the US the FMA has been shown as a nitty gritty martial art only fit for shaky cams. It has been a martial art utilized in stylized action choreographies which sometimes package the techniques used and transform it to signify ‘Chinese’ or ‘Japanese’ style of fighting. Some clips now are using techniques and deliberately branding it as ‘Filipino Martial Arts’ and that’s a development! But what is lacking?
In the Philippines, only a handful of movies showcase FMA and these movies do not reach a high grade of likability, among the Filipinos and abroad. This could be in part because there is a lack of education on the topic, the quality of the movies is not good enough, there are no stories which highlight the ‘Filipinoness’ of the martial art, and there are no relatable heroes which push forward the image of FMA.
With regard to education, the government, although it has made Arnis as National Sport, still lacks the projects supporting the training of new teachers or the establishment of infrastructure dedicated to the study of FMA. Programs which promote the Art is only limited to the sport. In class, it is only studied once in all the four years of junior high school. While in other countries, it is being used as a supplement course in other sports such as rugby or football.
With the advent of the social media, it should be an easy task to push the promotion of FMA, the only problem is, what is worth promoting? Our Filmmakers are not daring enough to produce movies with stories tackling the FMA. Hongkong have made a great deal with their ‘kung fu’ stories and what did that bring them? Opportunity to sell merchandise with recognizable brands and with it, the pride not just of Hongkong but all of China. The local movies related to FMA only detail training, which for me is not enough. The quality should be high, in other words, it should be a movie with quality story, character, plotline, screenplay, dialogue, cinematography, musical score, sound effects, and good actors who must be trained for months if not years. Then, if that movie wraps and gets released, that can be a source of pride, something originally coming from home, and is bankable and worth spreading to Social Media.
Even if we are still debating on what a ‘Filipino’ is and what does it mean, there should be stories or movies focusing on this. If we notice, famous martial art movies such as Once Upon a Time in China, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, even Ong Bak, does not only highlight the flashy fights but they also let us see deeper than the fist and sword fights, they let us see a clear picture of the conditions which call for the need of their martial arts, they let us understand how their martial art can become more than just a martial art but a necessary and indispensable aspect of culture. Take the Oscar Nominated Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon for example, how did the movie showcase ‘Chinaness’ other than just letting us glimpse a lot of Ming (or whatever dynasty) porcelains, swords and clothing they have. The ‘Chinaness’ was made into a significant part of the story, making it even a major plot driver. When the princess played by Zhang Zi Yi dresses and acts to become a male warrior, the movie has shown us that China, at a certain point in time, was largely male-dominant and therefore this cultural notion laid down the action, the conflicts, the motivations, and the decisions of the main characters. It even showed what spirituality is.
Connected to this is the lack of relatable heroes being taught and being promoted in schools, institutions and movies. Think about this, when you think about Hongkong or Chinese Action Movies, which famous hero character do you remember? I remember Wong Fei Hung, the famous historical doctor from Guandong who was one of the Ten Tigers of Canton. This is the kind of hero worth promoting - real, does have conflicts, and is very much alive because of the availability of heritages related to him but most of all, almost all of his movies deal with the subject of fighting against imperialism and oppression.
In the Philippines, we have a wealth of Eskrimadors who can be heroes. Take for example Valeriano Abanador who was a leading figure in the Balangiga Massacre in Samar – an incident between the American forces and Filipinos in which the Filipinos ingeniously outsmarted the Americans into thinking that the warriors were women because they disguised themselves as women and that the coffin they were carrying contains a dead body of a man who died from cholera only to be revealed that the coffin contained the bolos and arms that the warriors used to massacre the Americans who have been harsh to their lands. By the way, relating to that story, the Americans killed the water buffalos of the people of the town leaving the natives without labor machinery to grow food even if the Americans were welcomed with festivity and abundance of hospitality. Well, that is a historical account with a lot of movie potential.
When you think about it, it all boils down to how do we push the boundaries of our arts in order to vitalize our history and by extension, our identity and national pride. That is why we should package our martial art in a way that it has a reason for existence so that the Filipino in it could be immortalized.
Digging the Wells of Knowledge
Part of the lack of education of our youth regarding FMA is the lack of academic materials and studies dedicated to it. Think about this, where will one interested learner go when he needs information on a certain topic? Of course, it’s the library, but then, does the library have the volume which the learner needs in order to produce more? That is the situation of our academic capacity in relation to our arts.
Martial Arts, as a part of culture, is a potent field of study. It can bear a lot of historical, geographical, and socio-cultural information with it that is useful if we want to push forward our identity through the arts. It is necessary that before producing an art, it should be first studied, because meanings form through a process of distillation of knowledge.
The problem with our Academe is that it has to many problems to think about and has too few sharp minds who can produce significant knowledge. The Academe also lacks funds and support from the government as evidenced by the struggle of teachers to make ends meet. In short, the problem is interconnected with politics, the economy and the standard of living which the academe itself tries hard to alleviate.
Therefore, if this decline in production of knowledge regarding the FMA continues, then the Filipino could be overshadowed by other countries who are beginning to have interest in the FMA as a field of study, if not a course under Martial Art Studies which is starting to spread like fire. An excellent example of this re-focusing is showcased in a Ted Talk about cognitive exercises that help the brain where FMA was the subject of the study. This is not to undervalue that study and judge it as a theft of authority. The point here is, if foreigners will be the ones to have authority in the study of FMA in all its aspects and possibilities, it would be very dangerous since Filipinos then would have to look up to them instead of being the forefront of a subject that is uniquely ours. Again, this is not an accusation and a threat to the foreigners who have willingly given their appreciation to the art. This only serve as warning to Filipinos who continue to unhear, un-see and un-speak.
to be continued..
No comments:
Post a Comment