ADVERTISEMENT
CBCP president Bishop David denounces red-tagging, fake news
By JAMIL SANTOS,GMA NewsThe president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on Good Friday took a swipe at red-tagging and fake news.
In his homily at the San Roque Cathedral, CBCP president Pablo Virgilio David, also the Bishop of Caloocan, said red-tagging is one of the oldest strategies of corrupt politicians, but still prevails up to now.
He cited the case of health worker Dr. Natividad Castro, who has worked among Lumad and poor communities, but was accused
of kidnapping and serious illegal detention by the Philippine National Police. A regional trial court dismissed the kidnapping and serious illegal detention case against her and ordered authorities to release her from detention."Sabi nga ng isang madre, 'Ba’t ba ganyan, porke’t nagsi-serve sa mga dukha, komunista kaagad? Di ba pwedeng ‘Kristiyano’ muna?'" David said.
(One nun said, ‘Why is it like that, just because she was serving the poor, she was already labeled as a communist? Can't she be a 'Christian' first?')
Malacañang earlier defended the arrest of Castro, saying it was not a case of red-tagging and proper procedures were followed.
David also said Jesus Christ Himself fell victim to red-tagging.
"Ganyan din ang pagrered-tag na ginawa kay Hesus. Organizer daw kasi siya ng mga poor fishermen sa Galilea, naglalagi pa siya sa mga liblib na lugar tulad ng mga disyerto at bundok, at related pa siya sa isang kilalang aktibistang propeta na si Juan Bautista at maanghang din magsalita. Ayun, subersibo daw," he continued.
(The same red-tagging was done against Jesus. He was said to be an organizer of poor fishermen in Galilee, he lived in remote areas such as deserts and mountains, and he was related to a well-known activist prophet named John the Baptist who speaks harshly. Christ, they said, was subversive.)
ADVERTISEMENT
David said Pontius Pilate knew the truth about Christ, but "washed his hands" or refused to take responsibility for the accusations made by the people against the Lord.
"Alam niyang hindi totoo ang mga akusasyon laban kay Hesus—na siya ay kasabwat ng mga rebeldeng grupo na gustong magpabagsak sa kapangyarihan ng Roman empire sa mga Hudyo. In short, na-red tag siya," David said.
(He knew that the accusations against Jesus were untrue — that He was an accomplice of rebel groups who wanted to overthrow the Roman empire in power over the Jews. In short, Christ was red-tagged.)
"Siguro kaya Red ang kulay ng Biyernes Santo. Paalala din ito na ang ikinamatay ni Hesus sa krus ay red-tagging," he added.
(Perhaps Red is the color of Good Friday. It is also a reminder that Jesus died on the cross because of red-tagging.)
Fake news
Aside from red-tagging, David also criticized fake news, relating it to the Passion story when people were convinced of their own truth that Christ was the criminal and not Barabbas the thief.
He quoted Adolf Hitler's propagandist Joseph Goebbels who said "A lie told once remains a lie but a lie told a thousand times becomes the truth."
"Mas lalong nagiging totoo ito sa panahon ng social media. Di ba mas mabilis mag-viral ang fake news kaysa sa totoo? Tanungin mo ang mga Russians kung totoo bang may giyera sa Ukraine. Sasabihin nila, 'Propaganda lang iyan.'"
(This becomes even more true in the age of social media. Isn't it that fake news becomes viral faster than the truth? Ask the Russians if it is true that there is a war in Ukraine. They will say, 'That is just propaganda.')
The Caloocan bishop warned the faithful not to be led astray and exchange their principles with those who want power offering "thirty pieces of silver" — the price Judas got for the arrest of Jesus. —KG, GMA News