The price of freedom

Malacañang announced the recent change in community quarantine policy, allowing persons aged 15 to 65 to go out of their homes. Local government units, though, may impose a higher age limit for minors.

An estimate of 13 million more persons will have the freedom to move around public spaces. Experience tells us that easing of quarantine restrictions contributed to the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. Hence, the government must be taking a calculated risk with this policy change justified by the need to revitalize the economy and alleviate people’s suffering from prolonged home isolation.

Liberty is a birthright of every person, and this includes the power of locomotion and the right of citizens to be free to use their faculties in lawful ways and live and work where they desire or where they can best pursue the ends of life (SPARK vs. Quezon City, G.R. No. 225442, Aug. 8, 2017). However, no right is absolute. Limitations on the exercise of this right may be imposed if they serve the interest of national security, public safety, or public health and if they are provided by law (Section 6, Art. III, 1987 Constitution). There seems to be a consensus on the necessity of the government-imposed restrictions on our liberty since no case has yet been filed before the Supreme Court challenging the constitutionality of IATF policies and the President’s COVID-related issuances.

But time and again, we should remind ourselves that the government’s action of allowing more people in public spaces is not a license for us to be reckless in our actions. It is a tough balancing act for the government to allow this higher risk to prevent further hemorrhage in our economy.

Without a proven and effective cure or vaccine for the disease, the only defense available to us is the observance of the prescribed health protocols. Remember, every time we go outside of our residence, we increase the risk of spreading the virus, which can mean children orphaned from their mother, or a family losing a father. For every second that we observe the necessary precaution, a life is spared from the scourge of COVID-19. This life could be your own.

The price of freedom is still, and always will be, eternal vigilance (Margaret Thatcher). The antithesis of vigilance is recklessness where we unconsciously bet our lives. by Atty. Greg Borja Austral, CPA