The legal assaults on drag artist Pura Luka Vega signify a chilling reality: not only the LGBTQIA+ community is under attack, but also the very foundations of Philippine democracy. Religious groups and politicians may have framed the issue as a matter of religion, but their attacks are just means to stifle artistic freedom, demonize the LGBTQIA+ community, justify blockage of human rights laws, polarize public discourse, and paint themselves as holier-than-thou messiahs deserving of praise and support. The problem here is not Christianity itself but the weaponization of its religious values that are evoked only when it is convenient to the politicians. This ultimately fuels stealth authoritarianism which helps consolidate the political foothold of the established elites and erode democratic institutions in the country.

The Philippines is the lone Asian country that has a predominantly Christian population, particularly Catholics who constitute around 79% of the country’s total population. Unlike Catholics in other countries, Filipinos are intensely devoted to the Virgin Mary, the beloved Santo Niño, and the suffering Christ who is glorified through the annual Black Nazarene procession. Hence, it is expected that there would be controversies regarding the drag performance of Pura Luka Vega (they/them) where they were in costume inspired by the Black Nazarene, dancing to the rock remix of the Catholic church song “Ama Namin.” Following the viral post of their performance, the religious group of Black Nazarene devotees and the church leaders affiliated with the Philippines for Jesus Movement launched an onslaught of legal actions against Pura Luka Vega.  They were later arrested on the grounds of offending religious feelings and promotion of immoral doctrines, exhibition, and indecent shows under the Revised Penal Code and Cybercrime Prevention Act. They were arrested twice, without a subpoena on October 6, 2023, and again on February 29, 2024. They posted bail both times. 

Meanwhile, politicians wasted no time in jumping into the discourse to demonize the drag performance. Senator JV Ejercito said that the drag performance was indeed offensive to him as a Christian and Roman Catholic, and thus suggested the amendment of laws on religious offenses. If pushed forward, this would be an opportunity for politicians to transform such archaic laws into a more potent weapon by amending its statues with a level of vagueness that permits discretionary decision-making and, consequently selective enforcement. In essence, selective enforcement is when the law gets applied unevenly, with some people and situations getting targeted for enforcement more than others. In this way, politicians are fueling stealth authoritarianism by exploiting legal avenues to harass their political enemies, all while portraying themselves as morally upright individuals who only adhere to religious principles. Moreover, these archaic and vague laws on respecting religion could be used to justify suppressing dissenting voices and stifling freedom of expression. Senate President Migz Zubiri stated that Pura Luka Vega’s performance was a grave abuse of freedom of expression. His statement insinuates his willingness or intent of supporting laws that put more restrictions on our freedom of expression. This kind of comments from lawmakers is their way of building on a broader attack on Philippine democracy starting with framing Pura Luka Vega’s artistic expression as an assault on the Catholic faith. Senator Risa Hontiveros already warned the public against the use of this regrettable incident as a pretext for infringing upon the rights of the marginalized LGBTQIA+ community, which could potentially result in the enactment of legislation restricting freedom of expression (particularly artistic expression) and, by extension, the right to protest. After all, drag is both an art and a protest. 

Thus, the major issue is not about whether Pura Luka Vega was offensive or not. The Catholics may have been indeed offended by the drag artist’s performance; their religious feelings are valid. What is not valid, however, is their selective application of religious values which contributes to the selective enforcement of archaic laws on religious offenses. Pura Luka Vega’s drag performance was comparable to the religious offenses made by other people. For example, former President Rodrigo Duterte called God ‘stupid,’ lambasted the pope, and the Catholic church. Some religious groups and senators may have expressed their dismay but no one filed legal actions against him. Another religious and law offender Pastor Apollo Quiboloy was even protected from being arrested by five senators. One of them was Padilla who argued that the case against the human trafficker pastor violates the constitutional principle of separation of church and state. Meanwhile, Villar disbelieved the case’s legitimacy just because Quiboloy is kind to her family. These instances demonstrate the rampant selective enforcement of law that proves the hypocrisy of those in power who invoke convenient constitutional grounds or even personal beliefs to protect immoral allies. 

This hypocrisy extends to church leaders and the general public which reflects the broader discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community. This bias fuels both the virality of Pura Luka Vega’s drag performance and the complaints against them. Clearly, this case is driven by hate; similar religious offenses by heterosexual individuals and church members have occurred without legal consequence. For example, stand-up comedian Marlon ‘Tapalord’ Cadag mocks the image of Jesus Christ. In one  video, Tapalord dances against a backdrop resembling Christ’s resurrection, transitioning to sexually suggestive imagery. He has also been photographed giving the middle finger while impersonating Jesus. Furthermore, there are instances of priests and altar boys performing TikTok dances during mass, or people mocking religious figures like the Santo Niño. Yet, these acts are dismissed as humor—unless performed by an LGBTQIA+ individual. This prejudiced and selective criticism of both ordinary Catholics and religious leaders is both the cause and consequence of stealth authoritarianism being utilized by political elites to influence public opinion. Their strategy of selectively enforcing laws is indeed a formidable threat to civil liberties and other democratic institutions because they operate under legal frameworks that may be regarded as legitimate at first glance. Hence, it is necessary to always be critical of the way laws are enforced and interpreted to safeguard democracy and protect Catholic faith from being exploited. It is then beneficial and practical to make allies with the Catholic public and church authorities since their religion is not really the problem; the true enemy are the opportunistic political elites who use Christianity for their own conveniences and agendas. 

Featured image source: https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/in-depth/is-it-time-repeal-law-put-drag-artist-pura-luka-vega-behind-bars/