JONAS TURNS 38
( A celebration of thanksgiving and love)
Yesterday marked the 11th month since Jonas was forcibly abducted. Today, Jonas turns 38.
With family and friends, we celebrate this gift of life in spite of the fact that Jonas remains to be missing because Jonas continues to be a gift especially to the disappeared and their families. We believe that by his being disappeared, Jonas is accomplishing the mission he was sent on earth to do, which is - by his disappearance, Jonas has given a face to those who have been victims of enforced and illegal disappearances. And the family joins its will to the Almighty who decrees all things.
If Jonas is the altar upon whom our Oblation of Love must be offered, then we celebrate this gift in the spirit of thanksgiving. We also celebrate it in the spirit of compassion for those who have been instrumental in Jonas’ disappearance.
Those who have ordered his abduction, those who have abducted him, those who have tortured him, those who continue holding him captive . . . we address this message: The heavenly Father is a merciful God. He forgives all, all that we must do is to approach Him and ask for forgiveness and live a renewed life. We pray that all of you would be enlightened and right the wrong/s you have done to Jonas and the other disappeared. If before, you had to act upon orders of your superiors, today, you are freed from that and must listen to the voice of our Lord. Abduction and killing will always be wrong. It will always be a sin. It is not only those who have participated in the ordering, the abduction and all the means that lead to Jonas’ continued disappearance who are guilty, but also those who have the knowledge but do not act to help in the surfacing of Jonas and victims of disappearance sin as well. How can we face the Lord when we attend services, or pray to Him, knowing our hands and hearts are soiled by this participation?
It is not too late. The choice is yours. The benefit and the gain you get for your continued silence and participation in this sin will only last for a lifetime at most, but the damage it will do may mean the loss of your soul for all eternity.
We plead to those who have the knowledge of how we can find Jonas to come out clean and to make right the wrong they have committed. Call us, see us, talk to our friends. Help us find Jonas. You have been forgiven. We pray for your soul.
We want to celebrate Jonas’ 38th birthday with love the way Jonas loved his country.
The FAMILY OF JONAS JOSEPH TRONQUED-BURGOS
March 29, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
letter for Jun Lozada
Dear Mr. Lozada:
Greetings from the mother of a desaparecido!
Allow me to call you Jun. I am Edith Burgos, the mother of Jonas, a desaparecido. I feel a close affinity with you knowing that you too suffered, even for a short while only, the agony of uncertainty of your fate in the hands of strangers.
I have monitored your testimony at the senate hearing and have tried to catch the news on tv and read all the articles printed in the papers. If it were not for the fact that I am down with the flu I would have gone to the senate hearing and listened at the gallery while praying for all those who participated. But it was not meant to be, I could be with you only in prayer.
I couldn’t help the tears as I watched you admit to being afraid that you would be another ‘Dacer’ when the car you were in sped towards Laguna. I wondered what Jonas’ thoughts were as they took him away. Was his head covered with a hood? Were his arms and feet bound? Were his cries muffled behind the tape placed over his mouth? Did he lay cramped on the floor of the van? Did they start hurting him while in the car even as he writhed to avoid the blows?
I said a short prayer of thanks to the Lord for sparing you any kind of physical harm and for allowing you to be back with your family. I tell you, the pain someone must bear, not knowing where her loved one has disappeared to, is unimaginable. I praise God for sparing your family this pain.
That He has allowed you to be abducted and returned unscathed is for a very good reason. Undoubtedly it is so you will be His instrument in bringing about changes in the country for the common good. That you have opened up yourself and allowed yourself to be His instrument, is another reason to praise God and give Glory to Him.
But when one allows himself to be of God and for God, he likewise becomes a target of men who are for men. Why? I think it is because these men allow themselves to be instruments of the evil one who will do everything to destroy anyone who is God’s.
Yes, we can see how they would like to destroy you, just as they have tried to ‘demonize’ my son Jonas. You probably are in disbelief how lies can easily be peddled by the supposed ‘leaders’ of the country and saying these lies without even batting an eyelash. Let me share that in the court hearings of the Jonas case, listening to lies from officers of the law is an ordinary thing, and these are said under oath!
Let me assure you Jun that there are so many of us praying for you and your family. We pray that you would have the courage to pursue this to the end. We pray that you and your family would be safe from harm and that the armor of God would shield you. We pray for the enlightenment of the leaders who must take a stand in favor of the common good.
In my search for Jonas, I have realized that his being disappeared is his mission on earth, to be the face of the others who have been disappeared but remain to be voiceless and unheard of. I can only bow to God’s will.
Your abduction is proof that this happens even to the best men of our country . . . even to a president of a government corporation. I pray that you would also find it in your heart to pray for the desaparecidos and their families.
Finally, I congratulate you for the courage you have shown by not following the standards of this world. You so aptly put it . . . ‘What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul.’
One with you in Christ and Mary,
Edita T. Burgos
Mother of Jonas
Greetings from the mother of a desaparecido!
Allow me to call you Jun. I am Edith Burgos, the mother of Jonas, a desaparecido. I feel a close affinity with you knowing that you too suffered, even for a short while only, the agony of uncertainty of your fate in the hands of strangers.
I have monitored your testimony at the senate hearing and have tried to catch the news on tv and read all the articles printed in the papers. If it were not for the fact that I am down with the flu I would have gone to the senate hearing and listened at the gallery while praying for all those who participated. But it was not meant to be, I could be with you only in prayer.
I couldn’t help the tears as I watched you admit to being afraid that you would be another ‘Dacer’ when the car you were in sped towards Laguna. I wondered what Jonas’ thoughts were as they took him away. Was his head covered with a hood? Were his arms and feet bound? Were his cries muffled behind the tape placed over his mouth? Did he lay cramped on the floor of the van? Did they start hurting him while in the car even as he writhed to avoid the blows?
I said a short prayer of thanks to the Lord for sparing you any kind of physical harm and for allowing you to be back with your family. I tell you, the pain someone must bear, not knowing where her loved one has disappeared to, is unimaginable. I praise God for sparing your family this pain.
That He has allowed you to be abducted and returned unscathed is for a very good reason. Undoubtedly it is so you will be His instrument in bringing about changes in the country for the common good. That you have opened up yourself and allowed yourself to be His instrument, is another reason to praise God and give Glory to Him.
But when one allows himself to be of God and for God, he likewise becomes a target of men who are for men. Why? I think it is because these men allow themselves to be instruments of the evil one who will do everything to destroy anyone who is God’s.
Yes, we can see how they would like to destroy you, just as they have tried to ‘demonize’ my son Jonas. You probably are in disbelief how lies can easily be peddled by the supposed ‘leaders’ of the country and saying these lies without even batting an eyelash. Let me share that in the court hearings of the Jonas case, listening to lies from officers of the law is an ordinary thing, and these are said under oath!
Let me assure you Jun that there are so many of us praying for you and your family. We pray that you would have the courage to pursue this to the end. We pray that you and your family would be safe from harm and that the armor of God would shield you. We pray for the enlightenment of the leaders who must take a stand in favor of the common good.
In my search for Jonas, I have realized that his being disappeared is his mission on earth, to be the face of the others who have been disappeared but remain to be voiceless and unheard of. I can only bow to God’s will.
Your abduction is proof that this happens even to the best men of our country . . . even to a president of a government corporation. I pray that you would also find it in your heart to pray for the desaparecidos and their families.
Finally, I congratulate you for the courage you have shown by not following the standards of this world. You so aptly put it . . . ‘What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul.’
One with you in Christ and Mary,
Edita T. Burgos
Mother of Jonas
Letter for Jay
My dearest Jay,
I feel this restlessness in you and I am afraid you would be gone before we are back. If this happens, I cannot let you go without letting you know all the unspoken words that are haunting me.
I shall not dwell on my fears ... the dangers to your soul, the apprehensions of a mother ... the anxieties for a loved one. You already know these for I have told you so at our family council.
The mother in me feels this complete helplessness ... one I have never felt before ... not even when your ate told us she was getting married, nor when your kuya had his own share of problems. I knew somehow I would always be able to reach out and offer my hand if they needed me. But in your case, I feel that if a time comes when somehow there would be a need for a helping hand, I would not be near enough to let that hand be mine.
You were always the unique son ... eager to live life the fullest, impatient with the strings that kept you bound to heart and hearth. You showed this even when you first came out into this world ... in not more than 40 minutes that Easter Sunday.
Through your childhood, at play, in school and with your peers, you were always restless ... as if in search of a missing treasure. I know I cannot hold you any longer. But it pains me so much to let you go. If only I could get an assurance that you would remain faithful to the faith you grew up with in the family, somehow the pain would be lessened. But as I said earlier, I shall not dwell on fears.
If you must go in search of the truth, I pray that your search would be guided by the light and not by the darkness that breeds on distortions and errors.
The agony a mother must go through for love of her children is indescribable. I have no complaints. I shall not even mind for as long as you know that I am always here ready to welcome you back.
Bring this love with you and know that for as long as you are away from home, I shall be praying for you.
Life must go on in our family. Your brothers and sisters need our care still. The small ones need more than our care. I will always have that void and I shall be missing you.
But I cannot allow you to leave with a heavy heart. So take my blessings with you. May the angels keep you safe wherever you go. May the good Lord bless you and keep you always.
Remember, I love you very much.
Moms
I feel this restlessness in you and I am afraid you would be gone before we are back. If this happens, I cannot let you go without letting you know all the unspoken words that are haunting me.
I shall not dwell on my fears ... the dangers to your soul, the apprehensions of a mother ... the anxieties for a loved one. You already know these for I have told you so at our family council.
The mother in me feels this complete helplessness ... one I have never felt before ... not even when your ate told us she was getting married, nor when your kuya had his own share of problems. I knew somehow I would always be able to reach out and offer my hand if they needed me. But in your case, I feel that if a time comes when somehow there would be a need for a helping hand, I would not be near enough to let that hand be mine.
You were always the unique son ... eager to live life the fullest, impatient with the strings that kept you bound to heart and hearth. You showed this even when you first came out into this world ... in not more than 40 minutes that Easter Sunday.
Through your childhood, at play, in school and with your peers, you were always restless ... as if in search of a missing treasure. I know I cannot hold you any longer. But it pains me so much to let you go. If only I could get an assurance that you would remain faithful to the faith you grew up with in the family, somehow the pain would be lessened. But as I said earlier, I shall not dwell on fears.
If you must go in search of the truth, I pray that your search would be guided by the light and not by the darkness that breeds on distortions and errors.
The agony a mother must go through for love of her children is indescribable. I have no complaints. I shall not even mind for as long as you know that I am always here ready to welcome you back.
Bring this love with you and know that for as long as you are away from home, I shall be praying for you.
Life must go on in our family. Your brothers and sisters need our care still. The small ones need more than our care. I will always have that void and I shall be missing you.
But I cannot allow you to leave with a heavy heart. So take my blessings with you. May the angels keep you safe wherever you go. May the good Lord bless you and keep you always.
Remember, I love you very much.
Moms
Friday, January 4, 2008
Joe's Birthday
Today, Joe Burgos Jr, Jonas' father, would have turned 67. If he were still with us today, we would have had a simple yet joyous celebration with friends, colleagues and relatives. Joe always remembered to thank The Lord for the gift of life. (His daily ordinary 'living' was itself an expression of this gratitude.) His way would be to gather family and friends around him and share whatever blessings he would have at the moment.
During lean times, Joe would still celebrate and share memories and laughter with everyone.
This year, in keeping with this tradition, we celebrate -- and share. We celebrate not only the gift of family which has been a solid anchor in our search for Jonas, but also the gift of relatives and friends who have rallied behind us in these trying times.
We celebrate the gift of strangers who have expressed sympathy wherever we met them. We celebrate unnamed, faceless people from our beloved country and from other distant lands whose hearts wept with us, and who have offered prayers pleading with The Father that Jonas would be alive and well.
You have shared part of yourselves and for this we are truly grateful.
It is, indeed, a rare opportunity that we are blessed with the company of people whose very presence makes us aware that the Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us in a special way. We are reminded that even as Jonas remains missing, he is being taken cared of by Our Father. And that care given by The Father can never be outdone. We share this joyful thought with you.
We firmly believe that when we are ready, all will be revealed to us. We share this belief with you.
On Joe’s 67th birth anniversary and as we start the new year, the Burgos family
offers a prayer of gratitude for all of you. We commend all of you in a special way to the Lord. We pray that you will continue loving others in the way that you have loved Jonas' family.
As we pray for you we also ask you to pray for those who have been responsible for the abductions and the killings. We appeal to all to ask The Lord to give them new hearts. The way of peace can only start when there is forgiveness. We can all start by praying for them.
It may help if we remember that " When the heart is ready, the harvest will come. . . . Don't worry about all the unspoken, the unnamed, the undelivered. . . . Yearn for the yielding, but be patient. . . . Talk to the restlessness. . . . Sit with confusion. . . . Dance with paradoxes and sip tea and smile while you wait."( Joyce Ruppy)
May The Lord keep you and bless you always.
Edith and Peachy, Sonny, Jayel and Ann for Jonas
During lean times, Joe would still celebrate and share memories and laughter with everyone.
This year, in keeping with this tradition, we celebrate -- and share. We celebrate not only the gift of family which has been a solid anchor in our search for Jonas, but also the gift of relatives and friends who have rallied behind us in these trying times.
We celebrate the gift of strangers who have expressed sympathy wherever we met them. We celebrate unnamed, faceless people from our beloved country and from other distant lands whose hearts wept with us, and who have offered prayers pleading with The Father that Jonas would be alive and well.
You have shared part of yourselves and for this we are truly grateful.
It is, indeed, a rare opportunity that we are blessed with the company of people whose very presence makes us aware that the Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us in a special way. We are reminded that even as Jonas remains missing, he is being taken cared of by Our Father. And that care given by The Father can never be outdone. We share this joyful thought with you.
We firmly believe that when we are ready, all will be revealed to us. We share this belief with you.
On Joe’s 67th birth anniversary and as we start the new year, the Burgos family
offers a prayer of gratitude for all of you. We commend all of you in a special way to the Lord. We pray that you will continue loving others in the way that you have loved Jonas' family.
As we pray for you we also ask you to pray for those who have been responsible for the abductions and the killings. We appeal to all to ask The Lord to give them new hearts. The way of peace can only start when there is forgiveness. We can all start by praying for them.
It may help if we remember that " When the heart is ready, the harvest will come. . . . Don't worry about all the unspoken, the unnamed, the undelivered. . . . Yearn for the yielding, but be patient. . . . Talk to the restlessness. . . . Sit with confusion. . . . Dance with paradoxes and sip tea and smile while you wait."( Joyce Ruppy)
May The Lord keep you and bless you always.
Edith and Peachy, Sonny, Jayel and Ann for Jonas
Dalawang Tula kay Jonas Burgos, Desaparecido*
TINIPON AT INILATHALA NG BULATLAT
Vol. VII, No. 39, November 4-10, 2007
ODA KAY JONAS
ni Axel Pinpin**
Malaya kang lilipad-lipad, palipat-lipat
sa pumpon ng dampa naming maralita
upang tipunin, simsimin ang tamis ng pawis
nang namumukadkad naming ngalit mula sa pagtangis;
na noong buwan ng Abril na iyon
ay kasinglapot, kasingpula ng dugo.
Sa gitna ng parang
ay namasdan namin ang iyong gintong pakpak,
narinig ka naming pumapagaspas,
nakikigapas at nakikiaklas.
Ikaw ang paru-paro naming magbubukid
at ang paroroonan mo ay walang nakabatid
nang patiyad, marahas kang lapitan
at hulihin ng lalaking salbahe at matapang ang hiya.
MAKUPAD ANG BATAS KAY JONAS BURGOS
ni Raul Funilas
Bawat pangyayari sa Metro Manila,
O karatig-lugar, aktibong probinsya;
Ang hinala nami’y pawang ipininta
Ng Bruskong Militar sa poder ni Gloria.
Tulad nang makidnap si Ka Jonas Burgos,
Sanga ng militar, “Tumalon sa ilog
At doon nagtago sa daloy ng agos
Upang di maamoy ang utot-mabantot.”
Subalit maraming testigong tumindig,
“Sa gobyernong hangal sasakyang ginamit.”
Diskarte at kilos militar ang kisig
Kaya kay Ka Jonas walang nakalapit.
Sa’n ka man naroon O, Kasamang Jonas,
Kami’y di titigil sa pangangalampag;
Sukdulang ang buhay ang sukling katumbas
Makita ka lamang sa tuwid na batas.
Inilathala ng Bulatlat
*Ang dalawang tulang ito ay parehong inihanda ng mga may-akda para sa kauna-unahang buwanang Protest Poetry Night ng Artists’ ARREST sa Mag:net Katipunan, na ginanap noong Oktubre 29.
**Si Axel Pinpin ay kabilang sa tinaguriang “Tagaytay 5” – kasama nina Riel Custodio, Aristedes Sarmiento, Enrico Ybañez, at Michael Masayes – na dinukot ng mga pulis at militar noong Abril 28, 2006 sa Tagaytay City, pinaratangang mga “rebeldeng komunista” at ngayo’y mahigit sa isang taon nang nakakulong sa Camp Vicente Lim ng Philippine National Police (PNP). Naging fellow siya para sa tula ng UP National Writers Workshop noong 1999
Vol. VII, No. 39, November 4-10, 2007
ODA KAY JONAS
ni Axel Pinpin**
Malaya kang lilipad-lipad, palipat-lipat
sa pumpon ng dampa naming maralita
upang tipunin, simsimin ang tamis ng pawis
nang namumukadkad naming ngalit mula sa pagtangis;
na noong buwan ng Abril na iyon
ay kasinglapot, kasingpula ng dugo.
Sa gitna ng parang
ay namasdan namin ang iyong gintong pakpak,
narinig ka naming pumapagaspas,
nakikigapas at nakikiaklas.
Ikaw ang paru-paro naming magbubukid
at ang paroroonan mo ay walang nakabatid
nang patiyad, marahas kang lapitan
at hulihin ng lalaking salbahe at matapang ang hiya.
MAKUPAD ANG BATAS KAY JONAS BURGOS
ni Raul Funilas
Bawat pangyayari sa Metro Manila,
O karatig-lugar, aktibong probinsya;
Ang hinala nami’y pawang ipininta
Ng Bruskong Militar sa poder ni Gloria.
Tulad nang makidnap si Ka Jonas Burgos,
Sanga ng militar, “Tumalon sa ilog
At doon nagtago sa daloy ng agos
Upang di maamoy ang utot-mabantot.”
Subalit maraming testigong tumindig,
“Sa gobyernong hangal sasakyang ginamit.”
Diskarte at kilos militar ang kisig
Kaya kay Ka Jonas walang nakalapit.
Sa’n ka man naroon O, Kasamang Jonas,
Kami’y di titigil sa pangangalampag;
Sukdulang ang buhay ang sukling katumbas
Makita ka lamang sa tuwid na batas.
Inilathala ng Bulatlat
*Ang dalawang tulang ito ay parehong inihanda ng mga may-akda para sa kauna-unahang buwanang Protest Poetry Night ng Artists’ ARREST sa Mag:net Katipunan, na ginanap noong Oktubre 29.
**Si Axel Pinpin ay kabilang sa tinaguriang “Tagaytay 5” – kasama nina Riel Custodio, Aristedes Sarmiento, Enrico Ybañez, at Michael Masayes – na dinukot ng mga pulis at militar noong Abril 28, 2006 sa Tagaytay City, pinaratangang mga “rebeldeng komunista” at ngayo’y mahigit sa isang taon nang nakakulong sa Camp Vicente Lim ng Philippine National Police (PNP). Naging fellow siya para sa tula ng UP National Writers Workshop noong 1999
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Huling Balita at UP Film Center on Dec. 11
Please join us at the UP Film Center for our benefit gig billed as "Huling Balita".
Saturday, December 8, 2007
SURFACING - a photo project on the lives of the families of desaparecidos
They were activists, wanting to change society by arousing and organizing amongst the masses. They were ordinary civilians, going about their daily lives. Suddenly, they disappear. Desaparecidos is the Spanish word meaning “the disappeared.” It was coined in Latin America where thousands became victims of enforced disappearance implemented by tyrannical regimes.
Enforced disappearance is “committed by government officials or by organized groups acting in behalf, or with the support, consent or acquiescence of the government,” according to the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons against Enforced Disappearance. It is among the most common human rights violations committed in the Philippines, often by suspected military agents in the name of counter-insurgency. Under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, there have been 184 desaparecidos, the highest since martial law.
SURFACING, a photographers' initiative led by the Free Jonas Burgos Movement and Desaparecidos, is an effort to create and sustain public awareness on the issue of enforced disappearances. It shows the lives and struggles of 14 families of the disappeared, as well as that of the disappeared.
“A photograph is an expression of absence and a form of transport,” says writer John Berger. Let these photos express the pain and injustice of the desaparecidos’ absence and transport us to the reality that we need to face and collectively challenge.
December 5-11 Slideshow at Robinsons Galleria Cinema Lobby
December 9 North Edsa MRT Station c/o Larawanology
December 10 Plaza Miranda mobile exhibit
December 11 UP Film Center
Enforced disappearance is “committed by government officials or by organized groups acting in behalf, or with the support, consent or acquiescence of the government,” according to the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons against Enforced Disappearance. It is among the most common human rights violations committed in the Philippines, often by suspected military agents in the name of counter-insurgency. Under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, there have been 184 desaparecidos, the highest since martial law.
SURFACING, a photographers' initiative led by the Free Jonas Burgos Movement and Desaparecidos, is an effort to create and sustain public awareness on the issue of enforced disappearances. It shows the lives and struggles of 14 families of the disappeared, as well as that of the disappeared.
“A photograph is an expression of absence and a form of transport,” says writer John Berger. Let these photos express the pain and injustice of the desaparecidos’ absence and transport us to the reality that we need to face and collectively challenge.
December 5-11 Slideshow at Robinsons Galleria Cinema Lobby
December 9 North Edsa MRT Station c/o Larawanology
December 10 Plaza Miranda mobile exhibit
December 11 UP Film Center
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