Some Lessons We Can Learn from the Ces Drilon Abduction

by Frencie L. Carreon

Media colleagues Ces Drilon, Angelo Villarama, and Jimmy Encarnacion are finally free again and are back in the company of their families.

What are some of the lessons that we may ponder on as part of the 'experiential learning' then?

First, through all the brouhaha, we realize that the 'No ransom' policy is paper stuff. It does not reflect reality.

Second, we learn that 'ransom' has new synonyms. They're now labeled 'board-and-lodging' fees and 'livelihood projects'.

Third, it pays to be a negotiator. You get to have free media mileage. Oh, you just have to be careful with what you have to say—the amounts you specify, especially. Somehow, your slip might show, and well, you might forget someone's cut.

Fourth, for journalists who waited overnight in La Vista del Mar Resort, a 5-hour wait is worth a story.

Fifth, don't arrive in Sulu wearing a mini-skirt. Culturally, it's a taboo.

Sixth, inform your parents if you're going to Sulu. Leave "instructions"—location of important documents, leaving of passwords in safe locations, details on your insurance, unfinished contracts, a list of collectibles and payables probably, and others. Hug all people you love, or you may never hug them or get a hug from them again.

Seventh, realize that not too many know who 'John Doe' is. If a case is to be filed against a Kidnap-for-Ransom group who se members were actually your companions during the days of your captivity, make sure you got the names. 'John Doe' is such a terribly infamous name.

Eighth, don't just trust anyone when you go to a place unfamiliar to you--especially if you don't understand the language and the culture a bit. You will never know at which point would trust—and friendship—be put to a severe test.

Ninth, behind all the combined efforts of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippine National Police (PNP), the local government units in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), and other concerned local groups, and the vigilance of members of the country's Fourth Estate, quietly stands the strong support of an ally: the United States Government, and the US Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines (JSOTFP).

Tenth, painfully, one realizes that media and terrorism can be "wed" off somewhere at some point in time, in a user-used tandem. Terrorists can make media their handmaiden, hence their ultimate avenue and prey. Media can also feast on terrorists' actions as hot-selling stories, especially amid a multi-cultural setting of sensationalism-loving citizens.

If you're in luck, then you still can live on to learn the lessons--and tell the story.

Better still, don't "enroll". Don't take the "class". Didn't Vernon Sanders say, "Experience is a hard teacher. It gives the test first, the lesson afterwards."

(Published in Zamboanga Today on June 22, 2008, page 10.)