The most powerful symbol perhaps for the Filipino as a nation is the yellow ribbon tied to Ninoy Aquino and then to the fight that Tita Cory continued to her deathbed. According to a story published in the Inquirer, it was a friend of the Aquino’s that thought of using the song “Tie a Yellow Ribbon” since it has really been many years since Ninoy has left the country.
Then they started tying yellow ribbons in the trees along the avenues. This same symbol is carried by Noynoy, the Aquino who is running for President. The most contentious of the issues that he faces is the massacre of 12 protesting farmers and 2 children in the Cojuangco-owned Hacienda Luisita over a dispute in a collective bargaining agreement with the United Luisita Workers Union (ULWU).
Knowing that this is going to be a stinging pain in his ass, Noynoy recently announced that they are planning to give up their shares. That doesn’t change a thing. His silence when he was Senator makes questions his ability to render justice for the poor. Not all forgets that blood grows in Hacienda Luisita. That symbol is tainted with bloood.
