Ang habilin ng alitaptap
Huwag natin kalimutan
Ang madilim na yugto sa ating kasaysayan
Ang ating bansa'y nayanig at dumilim
Mga gabi'y malalim at makulimlim
Ngunit mayroong maliliit na mga ilaw na patuloy na lumalaban
- Shalimar Ali
Forty-eight years ago today, Proclamation No. 1081 was signed. On September 23, 1972, former President Ferdinand Marcos announced the declaration of Martial Law. Forty-eight years have passed, but the stories of those who were wounded and abused during this time remain fresh.
Earlier this year, the SBCA Human Rights Center initiated #KwentongEDSAI, compiling stories from torture to victory in light of the 34th anniversary of the People Power Revolution. Today, as we remember the start of the Martial Law regime’s dark days, we bring back this initiative to remind the people of what happened during this period.
From September 17 to September 23, #KwentongMartialLaw will bring stories from the past, straight from the people who have witnessed the atrocities of Martial Law for themselves. These are people who either lost loved ones, were tortured, or imprisoned during this time.
These are the scars of truth from our past. Listen as #HRCSpeaksUp. Together, let’s claim #NeverAgain
“When I was in college, my professor accidentally called one of my classmates ‘General’ letting the whole class know that we have a high- ranking official in the class. Back then, soldiers were allowed to pose as (UP)students to get closer to their subjects.”
“What happened next sir?”
He shook his head. And mumbled:
“I don’t know. We never saw my professor ever again”
Professor Reuel Molina Aguila, PhD was a UP freshman who was active in protest. He was also imprisoned during the Martial Law era.
He is now currently employed as a writing professor in UP Diliman.
When Martial law was declared I was still a college student. I remember parents were celebrating the declaration of martial law because they thought it will bring discipline to the youth back then. Curfews were imposed and even simple matters like having long hair will get you arrested. You will be detained for 2 days and forced to do community service. During that time I never personally witness torture or extrajudicial killing, but I did hear some classmates, friends, professors who disappeared. You can’t even meet with more than two members since freedom of assembly was also prohibited. To bypass this we used to form study groups. The press was also closed leaving only those that spread Marcos propaganda. It was really like a police state.
When EDSA happened I was there, it was a unity, a confluence of all opposition groups to demand the stepping down of Marcos. The Good thing about EDSA was that the people united to end dictatorship. The bad thing was we thought we were bringing real changes but EDSA was hijacked by another group of oligarchs. So after EDSA elitist rule just came back with another color.
For the next generation we should unite and move beyond personal leadership. Real change does not come from removing one leader and replace it with another personality. We should all aim for real reform that is “issue oriented that will amplify the real people's agenda” and bring about socio, political, cultural, economic rights.
- Atty. Edwin Dela Cruz of NUPL
Noong college ako (around ‘84 hanggang ‘86) naging member ako ng Youth and Student Movement. Naging aware ako sa arrest, search and seizure order na iniisue ng presidente, acting as though meron siyang judicial powers. Meron pang ibang powers na ineexercise niya at that time.
Kasama ba kayo sa mag martsa nung EDSA? Ano ang naranasan niyong human rights violation?, tanong ng HRC.
Oo. Ang naranasan ko dyan ay mga dispersal ng mga rally. Tear gas. Kapag nag rally talaga, napupuno nila ang Mendiola hanggang lampas ng World Bank. Na-occupy ang dalawang lanes. Nakikita mo na talaga na ito na siguro ang end of an Era.
Pero one thing was for sure: Marcos WILL fall down.
Atty Ephraim Cortez is currently the Secretary General of the National Union of Peoples Lawyers.
Antonio “Tony” La Viña was only a highschool freshmen when he overheard his parents talking about Martial Law
HRC asks: “What was life like during Martial Law?”
“People were being pulled out of jeepneys, forced to cut their long hair, and forced to obey the curfew. I had a family friend who was arrested and my mother used to visit him often.
During EDSA I, on the first day, I was in Makati, on the 2nd and 3rd day, I was in EDSA. On the last day, I was in Malacañang.”
“What made you stay in the country despite everything that had happened?”
“I stayed because it was just much more meaningful to live life. I wanted to build a better Philippines. It encouraged me further because yun ang kailangan mo gawin.”
Dean Tony is a Filipino lawyer, educator, environmental policy expert, a former Undersecretary of DENR, Executive Director of Manila Observatory, and Dean of the Ateneo School of Government. He currently teaches law, governance, and philosophy.
“The Baguio 7"
Professor Nestor Castro was only distributing leaflets in Baguio Central University when he first noticed the Baguio-Philippine Constabulary watching him. He and his girlfriend were “invited” to Camp Dangwa in Benguet two days after and was detained in there from March to December 1983
One night after dinner, he attempted to escape but since it was dark, the guards managed to re-capture him. They brought him back to the camp to gang up on him. He was taken to a solitary confinement where he stayed for a week. They punched him everyday. Prof Nestor tells HRC: “Hinanapan nila ako. Nasaan daw ‘yong Powerhouse? Sabi ko, wala akong alam na Powerhouse! Totoo naman, hindi ko alam.” They then started punching and hitting him again. This went on for months.
While in confinement, he requested one of his guards for a lawyer of his own. In his own words, he said: “Sabi ng guard, ‘Sige, ito papel, sulat ka ng request’ So I did. Tapos binigay ko sa kanya. ‘Nung pagkabigay ko, he crumpled the paper, tapos tinapon. Sabi ko ‘Sir, bakit mo tinapon?’ He gave me a piece of paper again. Sinulatan ko ulit. Tapos ganun ulit, tinapon niya. Wala na daw ako karapatan."
When his day in court came, only then did he knew what his captors charged him of: Possession of Subversive materials. Prof Nestor continues to tell HRC: “Tinanong ko kung ano ba yung ‘subversive material’ na meron ako para sampahan ako ng kaso. Pinakitaan ako ng song book ng “Asin”. He pointed at the lyrics ‘Ako'y isinilang sa isang bayan ng Cotabato’ So nag react ako noh, sabi ko ‘Sir, saan ang subersibo dito?” Subersibo daw yun since at that time tinuturo nilang Haven ng NPA ang Cotabato. Imagine, kinulong ako for possessing a song book?”
Photo used is from a screenshot of our Zoom interview with Professor Nestor. Photos in the comments are taken from his Story that can be viewed in the Kapamilya channel.
He dedicated his youth to fighting oppression. Prof Nestor is now an Anthropology professor in UP.
You can watch his full Martial Law story on the Kapamilya channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=8GeNNVV4SF0
HRC asks Mita Catanaoan: "Have you witnessed any abuse or Human Rights violations during Martial Law?"
Mita: "Yes, I am victim myself. I was working at Malabon Soap and Oil Industrial Co., Inc. which is subsidized, Due to the coco levy fund scam involving Enrile and the Marcoses, they used the company as a scapegoat for the missing funds. Because of this false information, the police officers and military went to the factory . Our boss “Tom Ong” and the rest of us went into hiding, being given P50 by our manager and telling us “bahala na kayo!”
Me and my friend Mila who are in charge in issuing receipts were charged of falsification of public documents. While Tom Ong surrendered himself at Camp Aguinaldo. Fearful for my life, I went into hiding at our residence in Quezon City. Where 2 trucks of armed men (who looked like prisoners) went to look for me. My ninang who was a konsehal at that time, who plead enrile to sign my release papers. Despite this, I was still in the news for 2 weeks, being at large. A lot of people where cursing me and telling me to return the funds and surrender myself.
To have a record and order my release papers, I was brought to crame, where I was given an officer to watch over me, just so I would not be raped. Since every woman who was brought into that camp that time would not get out without losing her virginity. As I passed the other detainees, I was shaking and beyond terrified since the male prisoners where yelling “Akin nalang yan! Ipasok nayan dito!” Even though I only spent a night, I was always reporting for 2 years, just so they know I wont abscond.
During the snap election may magtatanong lang samin “Sino may gusto ng siopao?” siyempre magtataasan ng mga kamay, tapos tska kukunan ng litrato para kunyari bumoto."
HRC also asked Mita if she was there during EDSA 1, she said yes. And although she had her own family at that time and was scared for them, she didn't back down:
“Sobrang daming tao. May pamilya nako noon, pero tanggap ko na ang kapalaran ko kung sakaling sagasaan kami ng tanke. May takot, pero mas mananaig yun silakbo ng puso mo para sa bayan”
This is Mita Catanaoan. She was a secretary at Malabon Soap and Oil Industrial Co., Inc. during the height of Martial Law.
“I was only one among the 70,000 people imprisoned, 34,000 tortured, and 3,240 killed during Marcos martial law”
Cordillera People's Alliance tells HRC:
"I was a young student activist when Martial Law was declared by the dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1972. I continued organizing the youth activist contacts in the provinces, although now in underground mode. In June 1974, I was illegally arrested thru the ASSO – arrest, search and seizure order – and tortured (together with my younger sister Joji) in Pangasinan before being brought to Camp Olivas, Pampanga, where we were illegally detained for two years. The main form of physical torture was electric shock, along with psychological torture.
One day, the detention area in Camp Olivas was suddenly overcrowded with what seemed to be about a hundred new detainees, some of them clad only in g- strings. The news was that they were resisting the Chico dam project. The Marcos dictatorship was hellbent on building four huge dams along the Chico river which would have displaced many indigenous communities in Bontoc and Kalinga from their ancestral lands. The Marcos dictatorship had awarded 200,000 hectares of ancestral forest lands in Abra to his cronies as a logging ang paper pulp concession. Chico and Cellophil were so-called priority ‘development projects’ of the Marcos dictatorship throughout the dark years of martial rule.
Upon release from detention, I returned to Baguio City, re-enrolled at UPB but still continued being a defender of human rights.
Joanna Carino's message for the youth:
"Martial law breeds resistance and revolution. All democracy and freedom-loving Filipinos should therefore unite to build the broadest united front against dictatorship. Let us always remember the horrors of martial law, we should never forget. And we should always hold on to the
timeless slogans of that period:
Makibaka, huwag matakot!
Justice for Aguino, justice for Macliing, justice for all!
Justice for all victims of human rights violations! Never again to martial law!"
Joanna Carino is the co-founder of the Cordillera People's alliance and SELDA (Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detention at Aresto". She is also the first Filipino to receive a Gwangju Prize for Human Rights.
You can watch her full Martial Law story here: https://web.facebook.com/watch/?v=663319767411110&extid=4ysB1V1zIzNewjUW
"I was born 1963. Martial Law was
declared 1972. I was 8."
"I remember the songs of the New Society during martial rule. They keep playing these songs by national and pop artists over the airwaves. The national nutrition program by Imelda. The long speeches of Marcos during our CAT at the Grandstand of Luneta. Long hours of waiting then listening to a boring speech rain or shine exposed. We were indoctrinated at public schools and private
schools.
I remember Ferdinand Marcos speaking to us at the UST grass field multipurpose ground. We were forced to attend the Marcos speeches.
I remember the distinct squeaky hoarse voice of the dictator. We were brainwashed and deep in Marcos crap and shit. But we were deluded and hypnotized by his cunning and wizardry. We felt powerless to resist the abuses of his administration. Our psyche was raped. It was involuntary obedience. We acted like slaves. We were highly programmed to think and speak like mini Marcos. We were herded like cattle. We were manhandled and manipulated. We were lied to. We were cheated and robbed. We were kept poor and dependent so we can not think to resist.
Then we [were] awaken during the People Power peace revolution. We need a balance between individual rights and collective rights. The solution is fundamentally found in elevating the consciousness of the masses.
Then the man died and all his programs. We are evolving. We too are impermanent. We have to be detached to have a panoramic perspective of what is problematic. As individuals we must be responsible in raising our consciousness. Then we can form a better society, a fair society. Not free but fair. No single perspective is the truth. As a collective, all perspectives must be considered and given equal weight of importance. Each one is important to review to form a structural solution to our social ills."
HRC asks Rey Abadilla: "What was your experience during EDSA I?"
Rey: "I saw people gathering and walking all over
the metropolis. It was the height of resistance. The people were marching in the streets. It looked like as if everyone is on the pavements. It was in the news for days. I felt safe joining the people protest march. It was a protest against the unfair process of the recent presidential election. I decided to step out myself and walked to EDSA during the day. From San Juan to Cubao I walked with hundreds. Then I saw the thousands and millions gathered as far as CRAME and Camp Aguinaldo. I was supporting the movement. Then that night I heard Marcoses left Malacanang Palace and so I went there inside the gates for the first time with thousands of people wanting to witness the victory. I hang on at the rear of a jeepney passenger car at night with no money in my pocket and dared to see it for myself. Everybody seemed to be awakened from their sleep. Then I went home and watched the news some more. The next day was a new day. It was different and felt different. I was breathing new air.....I felt free."
Rey Abadilla is now 56 years old and living in the US, happily married, and with three kids. SBCA-HRC would like to thank the persons who agreed to be interviewed in light of the Martial Law anniversary this week.
Meet Tondo's first woman leader, Trining Herrera.
Trining was elected as a Community Secretary in Tondo in 1969. Her advocacy involves strongly believing their right to housing and the potential of women to be leaders. Her loud advocacy eventually led her to speaking engagements in the US, which unknowingly to her, would also be the same time Marcos declared Martial Law. She helped residents living beside Pasig River fight when Mrs Marcos drove them away, she told Bulatlat:
"She wanted to make Pasig river more beautiful. But what would happen to people living there? Is she going to paint the people white as well?"
She was arrested multiple times after that. But the one arrest that stood different from the others was her arrest in a police station in UN, Manila. Herrera said to Bulatlat: “They tied an electric wire to my thumbs. The wire was connected to a military field phone so each time they cranked it, it sent electric shocks. They interrogated me and every time I did not answer, they electrocuted me,” Herrera tearfully recalled.
“My thumb bled,” she said, “but they did not stop. I was already shouting and still they did not stop.”
“When they stopped, I thought it was already over. But they tied the wires to my nipples. I thought I would explode,” she said
Photos and statements are credited to Bulatlat with express blessing from SELDA (Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainees laban sa detensyon at aresto).
Trining Herrera was the president of the Zone One Tondo Organization, a group fighting for their rights to land ownership and housing. She is currently the National Chairperson of SELDA.
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