Mula Tarima Hanggang: Acosta’s fight carries on

“Prison makes us into poets,” says National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) peace consultant Alan Jazmines.

Quoted by cultural artist Ericson Acosta, in his essay “Some Notes on People’s Culture and the International Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners,” which was written when he was detained in Calbayog sub-provincial jail Western Samar on 3 December 2012, the line was lifted from a poem of Jazmines in the early ‘80s, “during the period of his second imprisonment.”

Acosta pointed out that Jazmines’ verse refers to poets in the figurative sense.

“Prisoners, [Jazmines] suggests, in many instances, apprehend prison life in much the same way as poets usually set out composing their pieces. In rising above the adversities of a bounded, compact existence, for example, prisoners are just like poets who try painstakingly to achieve poignancy of meaning in the barest minimum amount of verse. Political prisoners are all poets,” he explained.

Many parallels can be drawn between the trajectories of the lives of Acosta and Jazmines. Both are progressive poets and former political prisoners.

Acosta was arrested without warrant on 13 February 2011, while conducting human rights research in Barangay Bay-ang, San Jorge, Samar. The next day, while working and coordinating closely with the NDFP peace panel and the NDFP Reciprocal Working Committee on Socio-Economic Reforms, Jazmines was arrested in Baliuag, Bulacan, just a few hours  before the resumption of the long delayed formal NDFP-GPH peace talks.

It was apt that the silhouette profile of Jazmines appeared on the cover of Acosta’s literary collection MULA TARIMA HANGGANG at iba pang mga Tula at Awit, published by the University of the Philippines Press in 2015.

The book won the Best Book of Poetry in Filipino at the 35th National Book Awards last year.

The singer-songwriter and peasant activist was more than happy to accept the recognition given by the National Book Development Board and the Manila Critics Circle.

Mostly Prison Poems

Divided into five parts, ‘Mula Tarima Hanggang’ covers the poems and songs written by Acosta, the earliest of which was “And So Your Poetry Must,” written in 1994 and published in Philippine Collegian’s F1 literary folio in 1995, of which Acosta was the issue editor.

“And So Your Poetry Must” is in the fourth part of the book—Paglapat sa Lupa—followed by the last part Cubao.

Only three poems are included in Cubao, the first of which was “Walang Kalabaw sa Cubao,” written in 1999, and published in Kule’s Handumanan literary supplement in November the same year. Acosta recorded the audio of “Walang Kalabaw sa Cubao” for the CD compilation “Uniberso: New Pinoy Poets Calling,” produced by poet Mayo Uno Martin. The video featured Jazmines’ painting “People Power: Then and Now.”

The second poem, “Papunta sa Cubao para Magpa-mimeo,” written in 2000, was published as “Papunta sa Cubao para Magpa-mimeo, Para Magpa-xerox ng Libê at Rebo” in Kule’s Trip literary folio, during the same year. These two poems catapulted him to prominence in the country’s literary scene.

Pambihira, the third part of the book, covers Acosta’s songs written from 1995 to 2005. Though no guitar chords were included, readers will be able to take pleasure in the lyricism and philosophy in the verses.

One example would be “Palad,” where he played on the concepts of palad, kapalaran, pinalad, and sawimpalad. First, the persona illustrated the palms of workers and peasants (“Sa palad mo hinawan ang kadawagan;” “pinatag ang kabundukan;” “tinunaw ang bakal;” “hinugis ang kalakal.”).

In the last stanza, the fate (“kapalaran”) of the wretched (“sawimpalad”) were written by themselves: “Pagmasdan ang mga sawimpalad mo—/ Ngayo’y tumitiklop upang maging kamao, / Higpit ng kuyom kahugis na ng mundo / At sa muling pagbukas, bangis nang bibigwas / Ang bagwis ng pangarap mo.”

The song “Ang Ating Paaralan” asks “Pa’no nga ba tunay na magiging rebolusyonaryo?” to which the persona answered “Mag-aral tayo.” and “Ang ating paaralan: Pambansa-Demokratikong Paaralan.”

Acosta’s affiliation with the national democratic movement was also expounded by the poems in the second part, Mula Tarima Hanggang: Mga Tula sa Piitan (2011-2013).

In his poem “Halaw ng Buyonero: Kriminal,” the persona defends his fellow prisoners, saying that “Ang mga kosa ay wala pa sa kalingkingan / ng mapamwersang aparato ng estado, / ng malalaking panginoong maylupa, / ng mga burgesya komprador, / ng mga imperyalista, / kung krimen at krimen lang din ang pag-uusapan.”

The persona relates that the prisoners are no different from the “buong sambayanang bilanggo / sa bulok na sistemang malapyudal at malakolonyal,” and that “ang pag-asa ng mga nasa bilangguan / ay nasa bagong demokratikong rebolusyon.”

Jose Ma. Sison, who wrote the foreword in English, explains that “poetry can say the most with the least number of words, condensed or facilitated by figures of speech.”

For the founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines, “Acosta has a mastery of the language he uses to express himself and to suit his theme and topic. He can deploy the most elegant and precise words to evoke his finest sentiments. But he can also use the most robust words and street expressions to depict reality and the struggle of the masses.”

Sison compared Acosta to Amado V. Hernandez and Pablo Neruda. Aside from his word play and lyricism, the latter employed other modern forms in poetry. Acosta included some prose poems like “Jeremy’s Spoken,” “Kalampag: Isang Kontra-Apidabit,” and “Chillin’ Zone.” Some are also cantos.

Aside from using street lingo, there are also poems with words in the Waray language.

“Nakapagbibigay ito ng dagdag na pagkakakilanlanan sa lunan o kagyat na milieu na nais isalarawan ng tula,” Acosta explained. “Sa isang banda, sa aking kaso, hindi ito maiiwasan: habang salat ang kakayahan ko sa pagsusulat sa Winaray, ito ang wikang araw-araw na ginagamit ng lahat ng tao sa aking paligid sa panahong ako ay nakapiit.” 

Some poems are connected with each other. The prose poem “Jacob 1901,” which refers to Gen. Jacob Smith, instigator of the “howling wilderness” in Balangiga, Samar, is connected to the versified “Jacob 2011,” which refers to 2nd Lt. Jacob Madarang, head of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ 34th Infantry Battallion, of which members facilitated the arrest of Acosta in 2011.

The poems in the first part of the book, Pitong Sundang (2010), are also interconnected. “The opening seven poems in the book serve as a prologue. They unfold the commitment of the poet to the peasant struggle for land, which is the main content of the democratic revolution. He shows how the peasant’s knife can be used: for working the land, for preparing the food and for ambushing the oppressor.”

Acosta wrote the poems in progression: “Unang Sundang: Huling Kaingin,” “Ikalawang Sundang: Hapag,” “Ikatlong Sundang: Sipat” and so forth.

But the page for the last poem in the sequence, “Ikapitong Sundang” was left blank, except for the footnote, which said, “Ang tulang ito ay nasa computer notebook na inagaw ng mga sundalo sa may-akda nang dakpin nila ang huli noong Pebrero 13, 2013, sa San Jorge, Western Samar. Hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin naibabalik ang computer at ang tula.”

The whole collection itself reflects the collective work that Acosta has participated in the movement. His wife, Kerima Lorena-Tariman, herself a poet and activist, had a hand in the creative process.

“Tumulong siya sa pagbibigay ng opinyon o suri sa mga tula para mas mapaunlad pa ang mga ito. Noong nasa kulungan pa ako, siya ang pangunahing nagtipon ng mga tula sa koleksyon—hinanap niya ang lumang mga tula at awit na pwedeng maisama at sininop ang mga ipinapadala kong mga akda mula sa piitan. Nakatuwang niya ang iba pang kasama gaya ng yumaong si Kim Nepomuceno.”

Anyone can figure the telltale signs that Acosta will end up fighting with the masses. He was was born in 1972, the year former president Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law. He was named after Ericson Baculinao, a First Quarter Storm activist. His case was brought to court on September 21, a few months after his warrantless arrest.

Nevertheless Acosta “has transformed himself from a ‘troublesome’ artist to a serious activist. His artistic and political awakening started early in the theater workshops of the PETA, which he joined since grade school.”

On 31 January 2013, the Department of Justice (DOJ) had ordered the Samar provincial prosecutor to withdraw the case of illegal possession of firearms and explosives filed by the military, saying that the charges against Acosta were baseless.

After his release Acosta continued campaigning for the release of political prisoners through SELDA and for the welfare of peasants though Unyon ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura.

Aside from being involved in the mass movement, Acosta’s next project is a collection of essays about the peasant movement in the country. He is also working on his final edits for his Filipino translation of Ho Chi Minh’s Prison Diary.—LA, GMA News