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Angelo Kairos T. dela Cruz Philippines Democracy in the Land of Apos and Lakays The paradigm to address democracy is vague and in a fashion irrelevant, for democracy like all things originates from a source.   To study its present state, without understanding its origin is nothing more, nothing less but a waste of time. But still, we may ask, is it possible to really study the origin of democracy? Do we owe democracy to those radical minds that started its model and blueprint? Do we have to thank revolutionaries for shedding blood in the name of democracy? Or do we only have to look in ourselves and re-affirm that I am free? The concept of democracy is neither indefinable nor unexplainable by any school of thought that we use. Democracy is only transcended through a national imagination or at least a self-actualization. A past magnified. In the Philippines, democracy is a mere glimpse of the so-called "what life ought to be". Democracy in the Philippines can be seen as a sketch of the life that the patriots waged for. Philippine history is indeed tainted with blood and passion--three hundred years of slavery and dominance under the Spanish monarchy, never ending American rule, and Japanese occupation that at some extent have boosted, or in a way have exaggerated the concept of freedom as well as democracy for the common Filipino. Thus this paper will show what had happened to the daily application and concept of democracy in the Philippine archipelago. This essay was done with the help of interviewees who willingly shared their views and encounters with the universal concept of democracy. The streets in the Philippines especially in the country sides have been witnesses to the dying stories of the past. And among these streets you can still find old townsfolk who would tell you stories about betrayal and victories. But in the end, even if the stories would vary from beginning to end, a question would arise, have these accounts been taken into vain? And the commoners would answer "maybe yes", and they would blame it to the present generations that see being subjected to others is security and progress. But looking at the other part of the story, the present generation would argue that they are just being practical and those patriots are arrogant and self-serving. And the accusations would go on forever if we would like, for there is no end point that we can all meet and connive. Democracy is relative to all walks of life, no one can be found clueless about the idea, for the Philippine society is forged in this mold. Democracy, I believe, can never be set upon as a system for a country, simply because it will only become as a general idea with no limits of practice and sovereignty. And if these things will happen, would result to a battle of beliefs and ideas that can never be stopped through diplomacy or warfare, these things happen in the Philippines everyday evidently with the prevalence of insurgencies and rebellions. Now may I ask you, is democracy really good? Democracy upon its nature of being transcended has an affect that can only be measured at a personal level. Its effectiveness and applicability is only drawn from the core of our understanding and passion for it. No book, no study, and no statistics can even touch the tip of our wholeness and universality. Why do Filipinos cling to democracy as if they will live for eternity with it? Why are we ready to die when someone threatens to eradicate our freedom? The truth is never told totally, it is more than life and death, I think we treasure democracy as something more divine than a term itself and we revere it more than we revere ourselves.           Activist and a constant threat. I myself treasure and regard democracy as something far more important than the government itself. I became an activist for national democracy in the University of the Philippines, though I think mentioning the organization's name is irrelevant to the discussions in this paper. During my activist surge, I and my colleagues have developed a certain belief that democracy must exist whether a government is present or not. My generation belongs to the babies of Martial Law during the '70s to the '80s, which is why it is understandable that some of our parents were activists and freedom fighters themselves. Personally, I think democracy always take a better half of me towards issues and discussions. I ended my activist life simply because I felt that in a way it threatens democracy as a social order--our organization started pushing towards socialism and communism. The two concepts, I believe somehow pose a threat to the present system, even if these may give a "utopic" glimpse towards society, still at some point, it moves to integrate democracy as a part of a larger system. I can not let that happen for as I believe democracy should be the single social order.      Democracy, in a way limitlessly gives way to other schools of thought that is why it is always under constant turmoil. But still it survives all these years, which is proven enough with its applicability to the Filipino demographics. On the other side of the world, we can find dictatorship, authoritarianism, and monarchy still claiming to be democratic. It is an impetus to easily see the distinction between the enumerated ones and democracy. But as I stated before, democracy is an open door to everyone, it still allows these claims to be validated. Due to the occurrence of such claims, the degrees of democracy arouse a quantified approach in measuring democracy in a given demography. But still I believe that such measurements are dumb-founded, for democracy like life is unquantifiable at any rate or extent. Anti-theses. Democracy as a social thesis is still threatened by anti-theses in the political realm. I am a student of Social Sciences, ajor in Economics and Minor in Political Science, and it is a common routine for us to debate on the need for a change in our democratic system. Some of us would stand for a change due to the continuing poverty and insurgencies, but I would stand on a change in our perspective as a whole population. As I stated on the first part, self actualization and national imagination is needed for a system to flourish and for our case democracy. There are many anti-theses to democracy, and as a vanguard of democracy I will repeal these anti-theses at any extent, from classroom discussions up to international dialogue if a chance should occur before me. Self-actualization. Self- actualization is the least requirement to form a social order. It is needed because it draws a sketch of our pictured life and society. How do you self-actualize? Nothing is needed in doing so, it is a stimulus that we should react to as a common practice. I actualize myself in a world that you can defy certain things and you would still live to tell your grandsons what you have defied, its sense and values. A free world like my land, Philippines still needs further nurturing for it is still young and unstable. How do you actualize yourself? You do not need to answer for your society and how you accept it can determine in details how you actualize yourself. Democracy and self actualization plays at the same side of the coin, self-actualization as a personal achievement and democracy as a freedom to achieve. The other is a condition of another; both will cease to exist if the other is absent. Those subjected to regimes may have self- actualization, but it is an actualization as dictated by the regime, unlike in democracy your only regime is your conscience. Justice in democracy emanates from you and ends with justice of others. This is justice that I actualize; this is the system whereby I shall be actualized. National Imagination.The collection of self-actualization is known as national imagination, a collective perception of a given population towards what their life should be. Democracy just like any other system requires this to flourish in a given populace. How do we achieve a national imagined society? It is through a collective move by the citizens to alter any system to form a new one that they want, and afterwards to safeguard it from outside alterations. In the Philippines' democratic state, it is achieved by the collective movements to free us from colonizers up to the urban activists who halted Martial Law and up to the present, safeguard it. Democracy in black and blue. Black is the color of the ink that tints the paper of our history. Blue is the sky above and the seas that embraces it. Democracy in the Philippines per se is geared to the welfare of the commons. As a Filipino, I experience democracy as a sanctuary of dreams and actualization. Everyone has a vision of what life ought to be, Philippine democracy is being catered as one, we have to make realize it. Writing this paper is indeed fulfilling, for in doing so, somehow I am contributing to an envisioned Philippine democracy. If the world shall be ruled as one, I think democracy can cater for all, regardless of race and culture, with this assumption I shall conclude this paper. Democracy as stated can neither be defined nor coded, for every interpretation is a valid one. The world is an activated shaft that will engulf all things into its pit, but the world is also a world of volatility. Now with this, are we flexible enough to be engulfed by the world? Volatility is the process by which we flow like rivers in huge different channels, but all will end in a final ocean, a limitless one. Democracy is that ocean, by which all will have their share, but still all shares will come at a price. Others may sacrifice blood and breath for the common goal of liberation, others may give up dreams, and some even themselves. But does it matter if someone has nothing to sacrifice? Yes it does, because national imagination is not mere imagination, it is a vision that all must pursue and in doing so, sacrifices are made and done. But still democracy whether it takes all, half, quart, or a small part of you is a state of being that we aim for. The labyrinth of confusion and the bitterness of anti-theses are always present to destroy what we have worked hard to achieve, and it is only by our hands that we can forge a whole new world. It is within our hands to safeguard democracy as a part of our existence. It is within our hands that we can treasure democracy until our deathbeds. It is within our hands that democracy will never fail, for we have imagined and actualized it.