OBLIQUE OBSERVATIONS
By Atty. Gilberto Lauengco, J.D.
There is a viral video now circulating online of a dove whose forcibly outstretched wings were tied to a horizontal stick. The hapless dove was then attached to balloons and made to float up, presumably to its death, while carrying the veil that covered the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This was done as part of what the organizers of an Easter presentation thought was a unique way to celebrate Easter. Unfortunately for the organizers and the parish priest, this activity drew so much online flak that a church official had to issue an official statement apologizing for the said incident. Ironically, the said apology drew even more flak for what many saw as too soft on the perpetrators of what many believe as an unnecessary act of cruelty to animals.
The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) did not hold its punches when they released an official statement condemning the said event. A spokesperson from PAWS asked why the said church needed to “resort to unnaturally and unnecessarily killing animals for a gimmicky version of the Salubong ritual” and then lambasted the said act as “animal cruelty that has no place in religious celebrations or in any gathering within our society.”
As with many of the recent controversies online, this would be a good opportunity to make some observations and perhaps learn something out of all of this.
First, this incident has again shown the opinion divide in our society. This event has again polarized much of our online society. Majority of the netizens have lambasted the parish priest and the organizers and have hurled unflattering epithets against them questioning their competence or even intelligence. There are those however who have doubled down on their unwavering support of the church and called these reactions as exaggerated and uncalled for. There was a devout parishioner who stated that animals have been sacrificed since ancient times and expressed her befuddlement about the entire thing.
The second thing that many have realized is that even old institutions like the church must realize that times are changing. Gone are the days when Filipinos would automatically defer to whatever the church would do. Institutions must be aware of how people are more sensitive of many things nowadays and as such must reexamine even old practices. When the said high church official issued the apology, many questioned the fact that the priest was not punished and that the organizers were not even censured. The promise that it would not be done again was also criticized in light of the fact that this was not the first time the activity was done. With all the things going on, people want accountability and want the very people responsible to issue the apology.
Corollary to this is that technology has grown so much that we cannot help but consider its application in all things. Consider the apology of the high church official again. In his statement, he seemed to distance himself from the event in question. Unfortunately for him, internet savvy people have found a 2018 post by the same official that seemingly shows that back in 2018, this same official already witnessed a similar Easter event using a bird in almost the same fashion and he called it “a fantastic Easter ritual”. Thus, his recent statement has become hollow and questionable. Clearly, the internet does not forget and so-called PR practitioners should do well to remember this before crafting “crisis repair” statements.
For my part, maybe a drone could have been a better option to use for the event instead of a hapless dove. That’s just my oblique observation.
