Two stories dominated today’s news: the murder of the Peace Corps volunteer Julia Campbell and the attempted murder of Philippine Daily Inquirer correspondent Delfin Mallari.
Campbell had worked as a journalist in New York before she left to join the Peace Corps. She had been working in the Philippines for two years and endeared herself to people and communities she worked with. And now she’s gone, just like that, killed by some deranged Filipino in Ifugao. Her death is such a big loss to Filipinos, to the Peace Corps, and to the American people.
I don’t know Mallari but I do know that what happened to him has unnerved many journalists. Joyce Pañares of the Manila Standard Today was texting me about something else yesterday when she said she was depressed over what happened to Delfin. The prevailing sentiment, I think, is that if it can happen to someone from the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the country’s leading newspaper, it can surely happen to journalists from any of the lesser known papers and community newspapers. I do hope Mallari gets all the protection (trusted) authorities can give him.
What is happening to the Philippines? Lawlessness seems to be everywhere, from Ifugao to Quezon province. Killers are so bold they commit crimes in the open and in broad daylight, to Filipinos and foreigners alike. There is no respect for life at all anymore. And as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow, I’m sure the government will only say they will get to the bottom of the attacks on Julia Campbell and Delfin Mallari, form Task Forces to find the killers, and then promptly forget them. How have we gotten to this?
