June 11, 2012

Freedom is in You

Rep. Dina Abad and Rep. Jun Abaya

As the Philippines celebrates its 114th Year of Independence, we ask ourselves “are we really free enough?”

On June 12, Filipinos commemorate the day of their freedom from Spain who colonized the Philippines for more than 300 years. Filipinos also observe another date of independence from the United States – it was in 1945 when Filipinos started running their own country. Given these periods in history, the Philippines must claim that it is free.

But then the country is still entangled in corruption. It is struggling out of poverty. It is in quagmire on education and health issues. People have yet to enjoy the real benefits of freedom. It is in this light that The Freedom Project is launched.

The Freedom Project aims to recognize outstanding initiatives in the Philippines that promote, safeguard and maximize freedom. It seeks to translate freedom from a mere concept to actual programs that influence how individuals perceive themselves in relation to their role in society. The Freedom Project fosters appreciation of freedom as it relates it to issues that affect people and communities, and to solutions where one can be part of.

Participatory democracy, good governance, human rights and competition exemplify freedom. The Freedom Project is looking for initiatives that bear these standards. Ultimately, through recognition, public awareness on these principles will heighten, and people will experience true freedom.

The Freedom Project is organized by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF), a German liberal foundation. It is part of FNF’s campaign It’s All About Freedom