Bieber ban; are you kidding me, Congress?

Manila Standard Today, Lifestyle | December 20, 2012

Last Monday, all eyes were on the House of Representatives and the Senate for their historic approval of the Reproductive Health bill on third and final reading. As the RH drama was the focus of everyone in the country, not a lot of people know that a resolution was filed that morning seeking to declare a teen pop sensation “persona non grata” for making fun of a recently knocked-out boxing champion.

House Resolution No. 2962, filed by YACAP party-list Rep. Carol Jane Lopez and six other lawmakers, chastises Justin Bieber for having “indirectly hurt and insulted” the people of Sarangani when he made “distasteful comments” against Manny Pacquiao, who represents the province in Congress.

Bieber earlier voiced his opinion via social media that Floyd Mayweather Jr. had nothing to gain from fighting Pacquiao in the ring, following the latter’s startling loss against Juan Manuel Marquez. He also posted unflattering stills of Pacquiao superimposed with images of Michael Jackson and Simba from The Lion King on Instagram to further mock the Philippines’ People’s Champ.

“As his colleagues in this august body, it is incumbent upon us to demand an apology from Mr. Justin Bieber lest, we declare him persona non grata in this country,” a portion of the resolution reads.

Is this the kind of society we aspire to be; an oversensitive one whose Congress turns away foreigners with something critical to say? And we call ourselves a democracy?

First of all, Bieber was indeed a giant a-hole for doing what he did. Second, we, as Filipinos, have every right to be offended when one of our own is being targeted. We can hate on the Biebs all we want and ask him to apologize. Sure, he pissed us all off with inaccurate, biased and juvenile comments but he did not abuse his right to freedom of expression—he wasn’t being racist and he didn’t insult Filipinos directly or indirectly. He was talking about one individual in the context of boxing and nothing else.

Don’t these legislators know that Internet memes poking fun at everyone from US President Barack Obama to our very own President Noynoy Aquino and Senator Tito Sotto are commonplace in social media as a practice of free speech? Aren’t they also aware that trash-talking is standard practice within the sporting world, especially among hardcore fans and even sportsmen themselves? (Bieber is apparently a Mayweather fanatic.)

So what’s the fuss? Is it because, in insulting Pacquiao, the boxer, Bieber also insulted Pacquiao, the congressman, and his constituents? That doesn’t seem accurate because Pacquiao fights in the ring as a boxer—not as a singer, not as a TV host and definitely not as a member of that “august body.” That should be clear to everyone.

Besides, even Pacquiao himself isn’t affected by trivialities like this. “So we will pray for them,” he said one time and added in Filipino, “Let’s forgive them.”