TO put it mildly, Quezon City 4th District Rep. Jesus Manuel “Bong” Suntay has talked himself into having a very bad week.
On Tuesday, during the deliberations of the House Committee on Justice on the sufficiency in substance of one of the two pending impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte, Suntay derailed the proceedings by making a rather perverse analogy in an attempt to defend Duterte’s by now well-known public statement some time ago that she “imagined cutting off the head” of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Suntay likened Duterte’s statement to his reaction to seeing actress Anne Curtis, and finding her “so beautiful and desirable” that he “imagined what might happen.”
Suntay, speaking in a mix of Filipino and English, then added, “But of course, it was just my imagination. I don’t think I could be sued because I imagined various things.”
The immediate reaction to this was the committee suspending its discussion on the impeachment complaint, and voting to strike Suntay’s sexist remark from the record, to which he responded by complaining that the committee was “censuring” him. When the news of what had transpired reached the public, however, the reactions to Suntay’s comment were immediate and furious. Ms. Curtis herself, apparently choosing to be the mature adult in this situation, did not respond directly, but her sister Jasmine Curtis-Smith did, posting an enraged “what were you thinking?” reaction on social media. Several other well-known female entertainment icons did the same, as did numerous influential media and political figures, such as veteran broadcaster Karen Davila and Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, under whose administration Suntay previously held a seat as city councilor.
The disappointment expressed by Mayor Belmonte was particularly bitter, as she pointed out that Suntay was part of the city council that supported the passage of Quezon City’s landmark Gender and Development Law. In addition, at about the same time that local legislation was passed, Quezon City also passed its so-called Bawal Bastos ordinance, which criminalizes catcalling, and other lewd and inappropriate comments directed at women. So technically, since the Batasang Pambansa is located in Quezon City, Suntay purposefully violated the city ordinance he helped to pass. Of course, parliamentary immunity prevents him from having to face any consequences for that, but it makes his attempts to defend his unnecessary and inappropriate remarks that much more foolish.
In the aftermath of the controversy he started, Suntay, instead of doing what he should and acknowledging that his remarks were inappropriate and offering a sincere apology for having said them — which, to save face, he probably could have explained as a poor choice of words in a situation in which he did not have much time to think about his response — he has tried to defend himself. First in a radio interview on Wednesday and then in an address to the House plenary on Wednesday, Suntay only apologized that some felt offended by his remarks, which is not an apology at all, and argued that he was only trying to make the point that something that someone imagines does not constitute an offense. In his plenary speech, Suntay even emphasized his involvement in the passage of the gender-sensitive Quezon City laws, demonstrating that he may in fact be the most tone-deaf politician serving currently in the Philippine government.
Suntay is right in his general observation that one’s imagination, the contents of one’s own thoughts, are beyond the reach of laws. Everyone has the right to imagine whatever they like; no government can rule the inside of one’s own head. When those thoughts are expressed, however, they become speech. And while freedom of expression is something that should be defended, when that speech becomes an implied or actual threat against the safety or well-being of others, there should be protections. That is the problem with the statements of Vice President Duterte that are part of the impeachment complaints against her (albeit not the most serious accusations), and that is the significant aspect that Suntay evidently does not understand.
Vice President Duterte is free to imagine whatever she likes. So is Representative Suntay, and any one of us. But once that imagination is expressed, it affects others, and for those in leadership positions, its impact is much greater. As we prepare to welcome International Women’s Day on Sunday, March 8, the unintended lesson that “words matter” provided by the misguided lawmaker from Quezon City should be a lesson to everyone.