The Philippine Justice System
An Analysis of a 21st Century Philippine Literature entitled
Justice by Ralph Semino Galan
Justice means treating people impartially, fairly, properly, and reasonably in accordance with the law, while injustice... means the Philippines.
BACKGROUND
Biographical / Authorial information:
Ralph Semino Galàn
He lives in San Juan Delmonte, Iligan City.
He is an Associate Professor of Literature, the Humanities, and Creative Writing at the UST Faculty of Arts and Letters and the UST Graduate School. He has an A.B. in English (Major in Literature) magna cum laude from the Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, and an M.A. in English Studies (Major in Creative Writing) from UP Diliman, where he is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature.
His poems in English and Filipino have won prizes in the Philippine Panorama (1993) and Home Life Magazine (1998) poetry contests.
His other literary works, as well as the year they were published are The southern cross, and other poems (2005), Discernments: literary essays, cultural critiques, and book reviews (2013), Bongga ka 'day! : Pinoy gay quotes to live by (2003), From the major arcana (2014), and Sa mga Pagitan ng Buhay at Iba Pang Pagtutulay (2018).
An author who believes in poetry’s return to clarity.
Textual information:
It was published in 2011.
Sociocultural information:
The event that happened when the text was written was when Renato Corona, the 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, was impeached on December 12, 2011. The complaint about the impeachment of the Honorable Renato C. Corona, currently the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (hereafter, "respondent"), was verified on the grounds of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, and graft and corruption.
COPY OF THE LITERARY TEXT
JUSTICE
These are the accoutrements of her office:
the blindfold symbolizing impartiality;
a golden pair of scales measuring the validity
of evidence given, both pro and con;
the double-edged sword that pierces through
the thick fabric of lies; Thoth’s feather
of truth which ultimately determines whether
The defendant's life is worth saving
In J. Elizalde Navarro’s oil painting titled
Is this Philippine Justice? The figure
of the Roman goddess Justitia slowly fades
into thin air, swallowed by pigments
cloudy as doubts. In my uncertain country
where right and wrong are cards
that can be shuffled like a pile of money bills,
even the land’s chief magistrate
is not immune from culpability; found guilty
he has to face the music of derision.
ANALYSIS
Literary Genre
Justice is a literary text in the poetry genre because poetry is a type of literature that conveys a thought, describes a scene or tells a story in a concentrated way. It is literature that evokes a concentrated imaginative awareness of experiences or emotional responses, expressions of feelings, and ideas through language chosen and arranged for its meaning, sounds, and rhythm. It is made up of realistic facts, stories, and ideas about justice, and this is proof that this literary text uses this literary genre. The poetry tells a story about what happened to Chief Justice Renato Corona and the justice system in the Philippines. He shows that in the Philippines, justice can only be achieved if you have money and power. He is also a reflective person, describing the true meaning of justice. It stated that in the Philippines, justice is like the figure of the Roman goddess Justitia that slowly fades into the air. Like the justice system in our country, it can be manipulated by power and money. If you have power and money, then you could easily put the law in your hand. But if you're impecunious, then you don't have the right to withstand the law.
Process Questions / Analysis Guides
Why are symbols important in a poem? Explain what some of the symbols mean, and how they add to the meaning of the poem.
Symbols are important in poems to create deeper meaning than the literal words would convey. They provide clues to understanding experiences by conveying recognizable meanings. Some symbols, like the blindfold, symbolize that justice is blind. Justice is supposed to be objective without bias, never favoring the strong nor the weak, the rich nor the poor, the righteous nor the wicked. Also, it was mentioned there that the Roman goddess Justitia slowly fades into thin air, which means that justice has already gone.
Why are symbols important in the life of a nation? What do people get from the symbols of a nation?
Symbols are significant in a nation's life because they represent the country's pride, honor, and reality. They come to recognize and understand the reality of the situation, and they must unite together as one.
Why does the poem describe the Philippines as “ my uncertain country”?
It means that the Philippines is full of cruel and corrupt people leading the whole nation. Our courts oppose the righteous, and justice is nowhere to be found. Truth stumbles in the streets, and honesty has been outlawed.
What does the simile, “right and wrong can be shuffled like cards” mean? What does this mean when it comes to any of the following: politics and politicians, the police, and the justice system?
This simile means that the truth and lies are like an upside-down thing, which means truth can be a lie, and a lie can be the truth. When it comes to the justice system, human rights are clearly involved, meaning this simile says that there is not a fair system happening. Some people who have a high position or power still choose to violate a law even though they are fully aware of what the truth is. Let's say they can easily manipulate and control the justice system, which is unacceptable, especially on the part of the citizens of a certain country.
What is the poem trying to say about the difference between justice in the Philippines and justice anywhere else?
The poem says that the Philippines' justice is unfair. In other words, it has unequal treatment of its people, unlike anywhere else where equality and fairness for everyone are present.
Of all the objects that Justice owns, which one do you think is the most important? Why?
Personally, I think the most important object that justice owns is the scale of justice because it represents the balance of treating a human against a society. In simple words, it symbolizes the truth and fairness to everyone.
Why does Justitia look like she is fading in the painting, “Is this Philippine Justice”?
I think this is because justitia represents the justice that the country, the Philippines, currently has. We can translate or associate the meaning of the phrase being used in the poem, which is "Justitia is slowly fading into thin air, swallowed by pigments cloudy as doubts," with the justice that we have in the country, which at any time can fade since fairness to every individual is slowly saying goodbye in our society.
Why is money mentioned in the poem?
The money mentioned in the poem emphasizes that our justice system in the Philippines is controlled by money or the status of an individual. That the blindfold of justice traveled past Justitia's eyes.
Why was it important for the Chief Justice to be impeached? What is the message for Filipino government officials?
It is important to stop the corruption of justice in the Philippines and to prove that even though injustice pervades in society, particularly in politics, plaintiffs need to be punished by the law. For me, it shows that the government should do its best and not commit corruption.
Why does the Chief Justice have to “face the music of derision”? Is he derided, not only for his crime, but because he was caught?
The chief justice committed fraudulent actions, so he must suffer the consequences. He should be derided for all his wrong actions because he deserves it.
Contextual Analysis
Using the Sociocultural Context, Ralph Semino Galan includes in his poem the event that happened on December 12, 2011, when the 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, Renato Corona, was impeached due to his failure to disclose to the public his statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN). The former Chief Justice, Renato Corona, is the land's chief magistrate, which the author is referring to in his poem. That event happened in the same year (2011) when "Justice" was published. One common tool against corruption is the official statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN) of public officials. Former Chief Justice Renato Corona's failure to disclose his SALN can be considered corruption. Using this information, we can conclude that justice is about a public official who is found guilty because of corruption and should be punished for what he deserves. The author probably wrote "Justice" to serve as a call for government officials to do their job with integrity and take action against corruption happening in the Philippines.
SUMMARY
Justice is a literary text in the poetry genre by Mr. Ralph Semino Galan. In this famous poem regarding the theme of justice and doing what is right against wrong, the poet draws a clear-cut comparison among different societies. For instance, the poet suggests that the justice system here in the Philippines is not correct and not fair. In other words, it has unequal treatment of its people. There, Justitia represents justice in the Philippines. The poet also said that justitia slowly fades into thin air, which means that justice has already gone, meaning that here in the Philippines, justice can be manipulated by power and money. Like, if you have the power to control and the money to control, then you can quickly and easily put the law in your hand. The symbols in the poem have deeper meanings. Some of the symbols, like the blindfold, symbolize that justice is blind, that justice is supposed to be objective without bias and doesn't have favoritism. Right and wrong can be shuffled like cards, which means that people who have a high position or have money and power have the ability to make the truth become a lie and a lie become the truth. However, if you are underprivileged, you do not have the right to resist the law.
REFERENCES
This is a list of resources as well as the details of our information resources.
Book/s
Uychoco, Marikit Tara A. (2019). 21st Century literature from the Philippines and the world. Rex Book Store: 856 Nicanor Reyes Sr. St., Sampaloc, Manila
Online Sources
House of Representatives. (2011). Articles of impeachment against Chief Justice Renato C. Corona. Retrieved from https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2011/12/12/articles-of-impeachment-against-chief-justice-renato-c-corona-december-12-2011/?fbclid=IwAR0uAotTrHE9mCWs2wv50eWdO1e7sjKF-sYoWVNZaJdaz5JgHvNwtca7q3Q
Goodreads (n.d.). Ralph Semino Galán. Retrieved from https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6579447.Ralph_Semino_Gal_n?fbclid=IwAR3yv0lW5RCcD-vsihVmrRwYEqoYNy2LCtKx7xqI_QOtC293CRSulI36c-M
Santos, Gil H. A. (2017). SALN as effective anti-corruption tool. Retrieved from https://www.manilatimes.net/2017/08/13/news/world/saln-effective-anti-corruption-tool/344211
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