The ‘Collateral Damage’ Over the BJE Snafu Mounts

Written on Tuesday, August 26th, 2008 at 7:22 am | by Ding G. Gagelonia

The nation’s leading broadsheet, Philippine Daily Inquirer has now also published that photograph portraying supposed soldiers and police standing over the bodies of at least five fatalities in the recent fighting in Mindanao.

Here at FilipinoVoices.com where this writer also reposted that image from the Manila Time on-line site, there have been varied reactions, including a conjecture about the possibility that the stark image was ‘photo-shopped’ or digitally manipulated. This indeed may be the case.

So unless the authenticity of the undated as to the time and place where it was taken is estblished, this question will remain and points to the need for the image to be appreciated with caution, as it can evoke shock and anger.

The MILF is said to have been the source of the image, so whoever did ’surface’ it knew the propaganda value of the photo.

The chilling backdrop: this morning’s reports saying that the toll (collateral damage?) from the bloody weekend in Cotabato and Maguindanao is at least 133 dead.

Most tragically, among the dead are 5 civilians including a 35-year-old pregnant woman, a 60-year old lady, and an 11-year-old girl.

Add to the equation now the call of the Lumad to be given their own autonomous ancestral domain as the Supreme Court holds its third en banc session on the botched MoA-AD.

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About The Author: Ding G. Gagelonia is a journalist of some 30 years, having worked in both radio and TV news and public affairs since his teens. Ding Gagelonia now writes independently and does corporate communications consulting. He has two kids, Felice and Luis. His journalist blog is at midfield.wordpress.com

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3 Responses to “The ‘Collateral Damage’ Over the BJE Snafu Mounts”

  1. Dean Jorge Bocobo on August 26th, 2008 11:16 am

    Both combatants–the AFP and the BIAF (the MILF’s Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces)–cause “collateral damage”–sanitized language for death and destruction resulting from military conflicts.

    But there is one big difference between the “collateral damage” caused by the AFP compared to the BIAF.

    Collateral damage to civilians caused by the MILF are largely intentional.

  2. cvj on August 26th, 2008 2:56 pm

    Among the dead, it doesn’t matter whether collateral damage is intentional or not.

  3. Dean Jorge Bocobo on August 27th, 2008 2:47 am

    cvj,
    surely nothing matters among the dead that concerns the living, but that’s hardly the point.

    The photo belongs to the genre of propaganda. As a meme, it is mental graffiti. As far as I can tell it’s a fake.

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