Nationalism has created the world we live in today, in
all its wonder and despite all its flaws. It drove man to walk on the moon, to
dive to the deepest part of the oceans, to push limits and to strive to become
better. Nationalistic competition drives man to make innovations in all fields,
which manifests themselves into the rising standards of living in many
countries.
However,
nationalism also fosters divisiveness, with the needs of a nation often superseding
the needs of mankind. Wars, especially with the possible use of nuclear
weapons, dangle above us like a specter we can’t get rid of. Powerful nations
use their influence to coax smaller, weaker nations into concessions that are
against the latter’s interests.
Now, does
the Philippines need nationalism? Many Filipinos would probably say yes. But
why do we need nationalism?
In the
context of nation-states, the Philippines is neither doing really great nor is
it doing too poorly. Its citizens enjoy a mostly functioning government and its
economy is one of the fastest growing in the Asia-Pacific region and even the
world. Most citizens are connected to the internet, and we have a good literacy
rate of 98%.
However, the country is weighed down by a corrupt
bureaucracy and politics, and a simmering and intermittent rebellion is
happening in the south. Murder rates are rising, and the people are divided on
how to solve these problems, which is of course a problem in a democracy.
Now, would a higher sense of nationalism help
Filipinos? Or would it be better if we just let other countries tell us what to
do?
The problems of nationalism only manifest themselves
in extreme conditions, and most other countries do not operate in a
humanitarian way but rather in a self-serving manner. While it is true that
humanity is slowly coalescing into pan-humanism, this is only
true for highly-industrialized nations whose citizens have outgrown the needs
of a nation-state, and are thus beginning to transcend the need for nations and
borders, like what is happening now in the European Union.
What I mean by this is, while nationalism is on its
way out already in affluent countries, in order to join this emerging
brotherhood, we as a people must first find our roots and become a nation with
a higher-than-what-it-is-at-the-moment opinion of itself and of its heritage
and culture. This is so that our people will not become a casualty of
globalization, which inevitably steamrolls cultures who will not ‘fight back’
in a sense.
Nationalism is important for our people in order to
join the future world order with our identity and dignity intact. We are a
nation of hard workers, dreamers and heroes. And we, the current generation,
are at the forefront of this battle; if we don’t work, sacrifice our lives for
the country, then our children will wake up in a world not knowing nor caring
who their people were.
