1. The character
in the play who struck me to most would have to be Lara.
a)
Due to her experiences of Martial Law, she
evolved from just an oblivious “balikbayan” who knew nothing about what’s
happening to her country into a caring, helpful, and vigilant activist.
b)
Because of her exposure to the horrors of
Martial Law, instead of continuing her career in theatre and dancing, she
became an activist instead. Lara became the “Tandang Sora” of the “Bagong
Katipuneros”, replacing Alet after her untimely death, and she then devoted
herself into helping our country rid itself from the nightmare that is Martial
Law.
2. I think that we should all come
together and protest or at least speak out against all acts that violate human
rights (a most recent example would be the extrajudicial killings especially
the ones made by “vigilantes”). I know that right now killing the “bad seeds”
seems like best solution that our country can do in order to stop our
overwhelming crisis against drugs and other crimes, but I believe that there is
a better way to resolve this issue. We could create more rehab facilities,
research about effective methods that would help the rehabilitation of drug
users, create more prisons and enforce stricter and much more efficient rules,
we could better our justice system, we could promote education, we could create
more jobs in order to boost employment rates, we could better ourselves and
become good citizens, and lastly we can gain some sense of humanity and empathy
for our fellow countrymen. Yes, I know, killing the “bad seeds” seems like the
best solution but the reality is killing is just a band-aid. Killing and
violence will not solve the root of this problem. The best way to resolve our
country’s issue is by cutting off the root of the problem which is ignorance.
Once the people become better citizens who abide by the rules and once they are
given proper education, job opportunities, and motivation then need to join
syndicates and other criminal organizations would diminish and eventually die
out on its own. We do not need to build our country using the blood and bones
of our fellow countrymen. I know that this solution might not be fast but I
would much rather choose a long term solution rather than just a band-aid treatment
that would soon give out anyways.
