Weekly Brief
Behaviours that foment disunity and distrust amongst Filipinos may be genetic in nature.
In review and in prospect
If there is one thing that has long baffled observers of social norms and collective behaviour, it is the predisposition of Filipinos to clanishness and distrust for one another. This lack of trust and extreme insularness that seem to be roadblocks to large-scale cooperation and organisation are what could likely be significantly hindering progress at a national level. Even after more than a hundred years of a collective identity as a “Philippine nation” and more than half a century of independence, Filipinos are still known for a debilitating form of regionalism and, worse, small-scale tribalism that prevents the needed social cohesiveness and harmony to blossom at the national scales essential for broader national development.
Why is it that Filipinos are unable to mobilise at these larger scales and remain trapped in petty bickering between small tribal units and cliques?
One possible theory could have to do with the Philippines’ tropical climate. In tropical climates, disease spreads quickly. Because of this, tropical societies such as that of the Philippines’ may have evolved relatively more acute pathogen avoidance behaviours than societies that developed in more temperate and colder regions more hostile to pathogens and the parasites that carry them. In the steaming rainforests where early Filipinos lived, on the other hand, tribal units that applied a more open and trusting stance towards strangers and outsiders may have put themselves at relatively increased risk of being decimated by diseases carried by these foreigners. Indeed, because disease-carrying organisms like mosquitoes and flies thrive in tropical climates and pathogens survive longer in the moist, humid, and warm environments of the tropics, it would have been more prudent for small bands and communities of people to avoid contact with outsiders and even keep their distance from neighbouring tribes and clans.
Thus, in all probability, a heightened propensity for disgust and distrust against outsiders may have spelt the difference between survival and extinction for many primitive tribes living across what were to collectively become the Philippine Islands. Given that such cultural traits will have evolved over hundreds of thousands of years, the depth to which they are embedded in the culture and social fabric of native Filipinos would have been enough to make these traits virtually impervious to any influence by the relatively short hundred-odd year periods over which native Filipinos were subject to rule by European colonial powers such as Spain and the United States. Indeed, it is quite evident that, to this day, these traits remain embedded in Philippine society and can be seen manifesting themselves in today’s politics and society even as they are now incompatible with the demands of modern nation-building.
Given the strong possibility that behaviours that foment disunity and distrust amongst Filipinos may be genetic in nature and, even if not so, so intimately-woven into the fabric of Philippine society, how then can Filipinos build the modern and globally-competitive nation they so aspire to see? That, indeed, is one of the hard questions Filipinos need to confront and address in order to chart a path that takes into account their unique circumstances and characters as a people. The alternative is to continue latching onto obsolete narratives or foreign ideologies that are incompatible with the realities of the Filipino condition. It is ultimately up to the Filipino people to decide how to go about stepping up to the challenge of prospering as a society despite these obstacles. It begins by recognising the inconvenient truths about their society and culture.
Last week's blog posts
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Our tribalism is entrenched by our collective values of hiya and palikisama. We are more concerned with approval appearances and when we call out bad behavior we are ostracized. Charity begins at home but if children are discouraged from questioning and exploring new realms of ideas and existence then that negative tipple effect produces a people who are weak, compliant and lacking in the curiosity and critical skills that are the foundation of exploration, innovation and nation building. I am Fil-Am
and what I’ve noticed is that when Filipinos have their parade in NYC they invite only their friends or certain wools of prestige (doctors, wealthy people) to participate. This gatekeeping of the culture is but another insidious example of our toxic tribalism. Contrast this with the Irish and Puerto Rican parades, which are so large as to require traffic control and extensive media coverage. Our insularity against each other keeps us small, and others can sense it, which is why we don’t capture the zeitgeist. Even after decades of living in the US many Filipinos cannot embrace the democratic ideals of equality, we are still stuck in our arrogant ways and gatekeepers the culture and then we bemoan the “tragedy” of our children not speaking the dialect and being apathetic to their native culture.
Your account of the “genetic” nature of our extreme insularity and clannishness is fascinating and logical. I want to underscore the power of language in achieving unity and a cohesive national identity and culture. Look at Italy—before it was united it was a collection of various kingdoms and regions but one important factor—as emphasized by composer-patriot Giuseppe Verdi—was the Italian language. To this day Italian culture is bound by the beauty and richness of its language. If we are to achieve a Filipino culture and identity that unites our diverse peoples—and fights the deadlock of extreme insularity and division/-then we need to communicate in a unanimously agreed language that will also serve us in the global stage. Tagalog is not the solution. (I come from a fiercely proud Tagalog family from Batangas, so I love this language) . The problem with establishing Tagalog as the national language is that if exacerbates the very problem we are eliminating-regionalism. Non-Tagalog regions resent the supremacy of the Manila-centric dialect. Dr. Jose Rizal had once proposed Castellano/Spanish as the Official Language, and I agree with him. Even the Spanish ambassador will tell you that the Philippines’ sociology economic growth will rise if we embrace the mother tongue. Take a look at South America. The continent is diverse, with lots of regional dialects, but these diverse peoples are proud to be Latinos, and what unites them is the Spanish language. It IS possible for us to preserve our linguistic and cultural diversity while also conducting our political and corporate work within a rich and powerful language that can compete on the global stage. Let’s be trilingual (Spanish/English+our regional dialect) and we can become a formidable nation.