“ONE Big Fight” has always been more than a cheer. For Ateneans, it is a call to support the University, its teams, its projects, and its community. But recently, that familiar mantra has carried a heavier and more painful meaning.
Last June 8, two members of the Ateneo men’s basketball team, Divine Adili and Rene Baterbonia, died by drowning in Dipaculao, Aurora province during what was described as a “team-building” activity. For the Ateneo community, and especially for the families of these young athletes, the loss is immeasurable.
As an Atenean from both college and law school, I know how intense student activities and athletic training can be. In sports, the body is trained, but so is the mind. Discipline, toughness, and endurance are often demanded from athletes who carry the name of their school.
But no training culture can justify the absence of safety. The more physically demanding an activity becomes, the greater the duty to anticipate danger, supervise participants, and prepare for emergencies.
The Question of Liability
This tragedy raises a legal question: Who may be held liable?
Some have immediately called for Ateneo to be made liable. That call is understandable, especially in a moment of grief. But legal liability cannot be based on anger alone. It must be based on facts.
Ateneo has reportedly stated that the activity was not sanctioned or approved by its Office of College Athletics. Some may dismiss this as an excuse, but anyone who has been part of school organizations knows that informal activities do happen. Alumni, mentors, coaches, or teachers may sometimes appear in activities that were never formally processed through the institution.
So, assuming that Ateneo truly did not know of or approve the activity, the legal question becomes more specific: can an institution be liable for something it neither authorized nor knew about?
The Coaches and Organizers
If the coaches or organizers exercised control or supervision over the athletes at the beach, and if they failed to take reasonable safety precautions, they may be personally liable under quasi-delict.
Under the Civil Code, a person who, by act or omission, causes damage to another through fault or negligence may be liable when there is no pre-existing contractual relation. This is civil liability, not necessarily criminal liability.
The key issue is negligence: Were the athletes properly supervised? Were sea conditions checked? Were lifeguards or rescue measures available? Were the risks foreseeable? In drowning cases, liability often turns on whether those in charge observed the care required by the circumstances.
What About Ateneo?
Employer liability may attach when employees cause damage while acting within the scope of their assigned tasks. However, if the activity was not sanctioned, not approved, and was privately organized, Ateneo may have a strong argument that the coaches or organizers acted outside their assigned duties.
This does not mean there should be no accountability. It only means accountability must be placed where the facts and the law point.
Grief, Justice, and Due Care
Based on the public facts so far, theories of hazing or homicide appear difficult to sustain. But negligence remains a serious question.
“One Big Fight” should now mean one big duty of care: to mourn honestly, investigate fully, and ensure that no student-athlete is ever again placed in danger under the name of training.