Ronald Sendrijas is free. Well, at least temporarily as he is out on bail after more than two years of incarceration since his capture in Cebu in March 2004. The RTC judge presiding over his case granted him bail after finding the government's evidence not strong enough to establish guilt. So who says the wheels of Philippine Justice System turn only for the rich and powerful?

For a time victims of injustice were saying repeatedly that they have no chance of fair trial in our courts. This sentiment reached to a point where people would think it to be the general description of the system of justice in this part of the globe. But this has changed now, at least, to Ronald Sendrijas, his family and, hopefully, the very organization whose activity put him in jail – the CPP-NPA. For a long time Ronald Sendrijas was wanted for a string of criminal cases perpetrated while leading a bunch of CPP-NPA squads in Bohol and other parts of the Visayas. When he was captured the other year in Cebu , law enforcers thought it was the end of his story. After all what can one who is sick with the dreaded TB and in jail do to harm society? They could be correct then or wrong now that Sendrijas is out on bail.

If his views of society have been reformed by the time that he was in jail, then the communist warrior that Sendrijas was would have been ended. But if the long and quiet time for meditation that his stay in jail only served to sharpen his revolutionary principles, then his story lives on. My sense however is that he will be a reformed man who will make his family happy by not giving them worry anymore about his physical security every time he ventured into some of the most daring tactical offensives that the CPP-NPA have done in Bohol.

I have my reasons for looking at this brighter scenario. I have met and talk seriously to Sendrijas a few times while he was in jail. Being both ex-seminarians it did not take us a long time to feel comfortable with each other. In our talks I found him very sensible, analytical and having a mind of his own. I also found he was no longer a believer in God. That did not surprise me because most of the dyed-in-the-wool CPP-NPA I have known have also lost their sense of the Supreme Being. Attending religious activities, like a Holy Mass, to them is just a social function that they must do.

But even dyed-in-the-wool communists have reformed and abandoned that crave for arms struggle. The belief in the strategy to topple government may still be there but the body has limits as to its capability. An author once said, “If at the age of 40 one has never been a rebel, he has no heart. But if at the age of 40 one is still a rebel he has no brains.” Wholesome experiences that may have proven wrong many concepts that a person holds can ultimately also change his outlook and consequently his actions in life.

Sendrijas was treated well at the BDRC. As an inmate he did not lose his dignity as a man. As an accused he was given the due process that was due to him. If law enforcers had their way, they would have wanted him to be denied the right to bail. But the law and due process must take their course. That is our justice system. And that is the justice system that is working even if it has been vilified beyond recognition at times. Sendrijas cannot overlook that fact that under that wrongfully vilified justice system he was heard and favored.

I would like to think that now Sendrijas understands the fact that he needs not become a rebel to make reforms. To a man who is unrelenting in his values and principles, it is faster to get reforms done in an organization or a system if one works within. I know that because I once thought of doing the same things that he did as a member of the CPP-NPA. I would be glad to deepen our association by sharing my own experiences. To Ronald, I am just around if you need someone to listen to you.