Freak Show
Published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer
February 13, 2002
Editorial
TOURISM Secretary Richard Gordon must
really be growing desperate. To breathe new life into a tourism industry
that has been bloodied by violence not just in the South but even in
the urban centers, where kidnapping cases are again on the rise, Gordon
seems just about to try anything and everything.
For a time, his “holiday economics”
looked like a hot idea. Now it is beginning to feel like a hot potato, fit
to be dropped, even to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, if her failure to
advance the observance of Constitution Day by one day to let people enjoy a
long weekend was any indication. For even as the extended holidays are
welcomed by salaried workers, employers and wage earners have been anything
but enthusiastic about the loss in productivity and income.
Now Gordon has come up with another
brainchild: hosting the fight between heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis and
challenger Mike Tyson. He said staging the fight in manila could help
improve the Philippine image abroad, which has been badly damaged by
perceptions of political instability and the series of kidnappings by the
Abu Sayyaf. “This fight will focus the cameras of the world to a peaceful
Philippines, a sports-minded Philippines, he told a local television
network. He went on to disclose that he had directed the Philippine tourism
coordinator in the United States “to make a very big attempt, a
never-say-die attempt to get this out.
Hosting the fight will no doubt put the
Philippines in the spotlight. But it isn’t going to be the kindly light
Gordon is thinking of.
Sure, the country reaped some nice
dividends from the Thrilla in Manila. So did Zaire from the Rumble in the
Jungle. But both times it was Muhammad Ali who was fighting in the ring, a
true sportsman and champion.
This time it will be Tyson who take
center stage and, to put it very charitably, he is no Ali. This miserable
excuse for a prizefighter has broken all the rules inside and outside the
ring. He served time in prison for rape. He has beaten his former wife black
and blue. He has bitten off a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear in an earlier
fight. And last month in New York, he went after Lewis, without any
provocation, at the start of a press conference to announce their
forthcoming bout in Las Vegas.
In a better, gentler time, Tyson would
not have been able to fight again after committing any these crimes. But
this is a materialistic world, and while Tyson keeps drawing fans to fill a
stadium he will continue to earn millions without in the least minding his
manners. For as long as people pay to watch him, boxing officials, like
World Boxing Council president Jose Sulaiman, are willing to overlook his
many transgressions. And while there is money to be made, promoters like Don
King will be there to arrange the his fights, and decency and sportsmanship
de damned. Tyson has turned boxing into a freak show, but nobody seems to
care enough about the sport to save it.
To its credit, the Nevada Boxing
Commission felt it had seen enough to Tyson’s criminal conduct after the
brawl in the New York. It promptly revoked his license, forcing the
cancellation of the fight that had been scheduled for April 6 at the MGM
Grand in Las Vegas.
This is the fight Gordon wants to save.
An event rejected by the city dedicated to Mammon will be hosted by the
Noble and Ever Loyal City, if Gordon will have his way.
For what? Gordon says it will improve the
country’s image before the world. If Tyson is going to be the image model,
the country will be much better off retaining Abu Sabaya, Commander Robot or
any of the Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Gordon says having Tyson fight here will
project the country as “sports-minded”. But few people anywhere in the world
consider beating up women and cannibalism as sports.
If Gordon must absolutely have his freak show, let him bring it elsewhere. That will save the nation hundreds of millions pesos in sponsorship fees and other expenses. And above all it, will save Filipino children from entertaining the dangerous notion that big-time athletes are not bound by the rules. Tyson may be a hero to people who worship bug bucks. He is no hero to people who love sports.
