What will
you do when families of 17 murder victims of the Philippine’s worst crime
against journalists - the Ampatuan Massacre have trusted you to represent
them?
One admirable woman is behind all this and you probably might not have known up until now.
Meet Atty.
Prima Jesusa Quinsayas.
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| Atty. Prima Quinsayas speaking at TEDxUPV. Photo by Karla Magsipoc |
For
most of us, we would expect a woman of her stature to be reserved and serious
given the weight thrusted upon her shoulders. BUT NO, SHE PROVES US ALL WRONG.
We (the authors) first met Atty. Quinsayas last March 5, 2015 at the Iloilo
International Airport as we have invited her as a speaker for TEDxUPV. We both
nervously walked up to her as we held to her a dinagyang aeta garland to
welcome her to Iloilo. To our surprise, she jokingly said, “Ilang manok naman
ang kinatay ninyo para dito?” (“How many fowls have you butchered for this?”).
Yes, she said that. From that point on, we started to feel at ease with her. We
also wondered how have she managed to still be cheerful despite her situation.
In her
short three-day stay here in Iloilo, we have come to know more about her. Atty.
Prima took law at the Arellano University after her four year bachelor’s degree
in Journalism at the University of the Philippines Diliman.
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| Atty. Prima during the TEDxUPV Speakers Tour. Photo form Mae Gladys Llanes |
What’s interesting to know is that before college, she actually grew up in a different country. She lived with her Filipino family in Malaysia where she was raised to speak in Bahasa and British English (You wot mate?). Imagine her struggle when she started out in Diliman. She wasn’t fluent with tagalog and American English!
When
interviewed, she said:
“Growing up in Malaysia was a challenge.
It felt like I had to prove myself every step of the way because I was an
"outsider", a foreigner. With strangers, it wasn't so difficult as I
was usually mistaken as a Kadazan or a Malaysian Chinese (maybe because I speak
the vernacular without a trace of Filipino accent). With schoolmates and
teachers who knew me to be Pinoy, I always had to exert extra effort.”
She adds:
“Coming
home to the Philippines was a mix of awe (ang ganda talaga ng bayan natin),
disappointment (hindi maitatanggi na may kabulukan ang sistema natin) and
contentment (masarap mabuhay sa sariling bayan... yun bang hindi na ako
banyaga).”
When asked
about pursuing law, she said:
“Nope.(I) Never wanted to be a lawyer. I
simply reached a point in my life that I needed to be a lawyer.
"Wanting" and "needing" are different things, yes? ‘To
want’ means there's a choice. ‘To need’ means there's a necessity.”
Atty. Prima shared that when the Ampatuan massacre
happened, she was already serving as legal counsel of the Freedom Fund for
Filipino Journalists. This became the avenue for her to be affiliated with the
cases. Duty-bound, she transferred her family to Mindanao (to becloser to the
witnesses and private complainants) and cut short her career as the Dean
of Student Affairs in St. Scholastica's College, Manila, where she served for
17 years.
She is also always mindful of the (life) risks in being a
lawyer. When asked how she felt being a human rights
fighter andbeing a woman lawyer at the same time , she said,“Human rights
fighter? I don't see myself that way. I'm just a lawyer doing her job. Being a
woman? I love the fact that I'm one. Criminal trial lawyers are mostly men, and
many (bless their macho-driven minds) tend to underestimate women criminal
trial lawyers. Nice to prove them wrong. (smiley).More importantly, I think
women lawyers have more heart in the way they work especially when dealing with
victims of injustice.”
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| Atty. Quinsayas lights candles at Jaro Cathedral. Photo by Adrienne Villaruel |
On her
last day in Iloilo, we had a City Tour for the TEDxUPV speakers. Among others,
we visited Jaro Cathedral the Santuario
Nacional de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria (National Shrine of Our Lady of the
Candles). Given
that we were at such a place, Atty. Prima lit candles for her prayers. She
actually lit 2 candles at the church. One white candle for her family and one
purple candle for justice. When
asked if what gives her hope with her continued fight for justice, she said: "The fact
that I'm still blessed enough to wake up to a new day. Each day means another
24 hours of possibilities, yes? (smiley face)".
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| Atty. Quinsayas willingly poses with the TEDxUPV Organizing Committee. Photo by Niambee Palacio |
We will
always be inspired by her as she stands firm to her principles even outside
work. She has an awesome outlook in life. Despite the flawed system of our country, there are people
like her who even though, are at the forefront in seeking justice and are a witness
to laundered truths, still believes that there is still hope for this country.
“For as long as we are able and capable, we can
make our justice system work for real. All we need to do is believe we can do
it, with the help of others, of course, as no one is a Captain Barbel or Darna
(Philippine context). If we stop believing in the possibility of a justice
system that works, then why bother waking up every morning -- when all we'd do
is convert oxygen into carbon dioxide? :)”. - Atty. Prima Jesusa
Quinsayas, 2015
Disclaimer: Quotes from Atty. Quinsayas were
all taken from an interview we did via email.
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