Philippine Bishops say Country’s Crisis is a Moral One

Amidst calls from the public for Philippine President Arroyo to resign, the country’s bishops have said in a recent document that the crisis facing the country is a moral one.

In the document, the bishops have called for a faith-based response to the Philippine’s unstable political climate, rejecting all forms of violence. The bishops appealed for a review of justice, in addition to prayer, to return the authority in the political order to God’s will.

The paper, entitled "Restoring Trust: A Plea for Moral Values in Philippine Politics," was presented by the country’s 85 prelates at a meeting in Manila, July 8–11. The paper said the source of the country’s problems also lay in a lack of trust.

The prelates’ position runs against the current mood of social and political sectors, who are calling for President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s resignation.

President Arroyo is accused of electoral fraud in last year’s elections. The suspicion also extends to the President’s family, with certain members, who have left the country, being accused of taking bribes from illegal gambling. The recent rises in consumer prices have also added fuel to resentment.

Arroyo was asked to resign earlier in the month, when 10 members of her executive quit office.

Thousands gathered to support Arroyo at a prayer rally on Saturday, to defend the President in what the bishops call a "grave situation".

The bishops also criticised the attitude of several groups in this crisis, which, according to the document, could polarise the country. The paper criticised the groups, who "take advantage of one another, manipulate situations for their own agenda, and create confusion among our people."

The prelates went on to blame the moral bankruptcy of the country’s economic institutions which have led to a lack of trust among the people: "The people mistrust our economic institutions, which place them under the tyranny of market forces whose lack of moral compass produces for our people a life of grinding, dehumanising poverty."

The criticism also extended to a trust deficit with regard to the political system, saying the people "mistrust yet another key institution – our political system", and that "this mistrust is not recent". The bishops added, "Politics has not effectively responded to the needs of the poor and marginalised."

The paper also declared the bishops opposed to any action that involved Mrs Arroyo’s removal from office. No single one of the mixed voices calling for her resignation, impeachment, or the establishment of a "truth committee" could be declared truth according to the Gospel, the bishops said: "In the present situation we believe that no single concrete option regarding President Macapagal Arroyo can claim to be the one demanded by the Gospel. Therefore in a spirit of humility and truth, we declare our prayerfully discerned collective decision not to demand her resignation."

The bishops also stressed, "There is wide manifestation of support for the chief executive by a cross section of society."

The bishops urged the President not to "simply dismiss such a call from others," however.

They concluded by saying: "Non-violent appeals for her resignation, the demand for a truth commission, and the filing of an impeachment case are not against the Gospel."