BY FR. SHAY CULLEN
MANY millions are not fully educated. They are captives of mind-conditioning and prisoners of the political system that needs docile, dependent, non-thinking, gift -taking-voters. They are always in poverty to keep the rich elite always in power and money. With such dire poverty, the politicians have no interest to alleviate it but it enables them to stay in power and increase their own wealth and that is vote-buying power.
The poor in this system are the victims of the cycle of poverty. They have the most children because so many keep dying of hunger and disease. The nation has âthe highest infant mortality, the highest child mortality, the second-to- the lowest life expectancy,â Professor âWinnieâ Monsod tells us.
Freedom alone is not what makes us fully human but what use we make of our freedoms to help others preserve theirs. Are we ready, capable and willing to take risks, oppose evil and injustice and dedicate ourselves to preserve our freedoms and those of others?
Freedom to think and reason, to know and learn and acquire knowledge of right and wrong, and make the moral free choice to act justly with compassion is to be fully human. The freedom to act and hope that good will overcome evil helps us belong to the millions of dedicated good people serving the poor. They chose serving professions that help win freedom for others from poverty and oppressed victims. Among them are the judges that have a heart for implementing the rule of law with compassion and care that saves the poor, the abused children and the abandoned youth that fall into conflict with the law.
In Cebu, Preda Foundationâs New Dawn Home for Children in Conflict with the Law (CICL) supported by Aktionsgruppe based in Germany gives freedom to the youth. The Predastaff are welcoming more youth that are given their conditional freedom from life in harsh prison conditions to the life of peace and tranquility, thanks to the just judges. They are Judge Marlon Jay Moneva, Judge Jose Nathaniel Andal, Judge Ester Veloso, Judge Leah Geraldez, Judge Maria Dee Seares and Judge Stephen Ian Belacho. The âMagnificent Sixâ six, as they are called, apply the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Law with compassion and concern to restore a life of freedom.
They are more interested in restoring life than condemning youth to life behind bars for a serious crime committed in their impetuous ill-guided youth. The Magnificent Six have an enlightened interpretation of restorative justice and have found a role as healers, carers and supporters of compassionate freedom as the law dictates, helping these victims of systematic poverty.
They understand that the youth in conflict with law that come before them have experienced hunger from birth and dire poverty, their constant companion to adolescence. They are young people that have survived a violent and corrupt-ridden society that, due to unsatisfied needs, fell foul of its cruel seduction and temptations. They are the youth that have nothing in this world: no education, some no homes, others no hope of anything better in the underworld of drugs, violence and exploitation. They are the throwaway youth of a lost generation. Because of these compassionate and wise judges, the youth have hope, a contrite heart and repentance, a plea for forgiveness and ask only an opportunity to change, to learn, to be healed through friendship and understanding. Where before they lived in darkness and misery, now they have champions to guide and to lead them to freedom and to find the light and their true selves and a good life. (preda.org)
