BY VICTOR REYES and WENDELL VIGILIA
THE Commission on Human Rights (CHR) yesterday urged Filipinos people to protect history and truth as the country marked the 50th year anniversary of the declaration of martial law by the late President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos, father of incumbent President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
“Pockets in the country’s history are remembered, albeit beset with collective pain and darkness, because they teach us valuable lessons in guiding the present and our future,” Jacqueline de Guia, CHR executive director, said in a statement.
At the House, Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said the 50th anniversary of the imposition of martial law brings back memories of the “years of infamy, repression, corruption, and economic despoliation — the darkest years in Philippine history.”
“Mankind celebrates both anniversaries of bliss and liberation as well as years of despair and subjugation. Mr. Speaker, we must never forget the tragic and horrific past where friends and kin were subjected to torture, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances for their convictions and heroism. We must always remember the years of State terrorism by a dictator as we firmly resolve never to allow this national tragedy to again besiege us,” the opposition leader said in a privilege speech.
The PNP said it has monitored rallies in Metro Manila, the Bicol region and Cebu. There were no immediate reports of untoward incidents.
In Quezon City, militant groups held protest actions at the University of the Philippines-Diliman campus, said PNP spokeswoman Col. Jean Fajardo.
Fajardo also said some 5,000 policemen were deployed to various areas in Metro Manila to monitor rallies and to prevent occurrence of crimes.
The militant labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno said workers’ conditions during the Marcos dictatorship are similar under the Marcos Jr. administration.
“The son is no different from his father. Marcos Jr has not yet reached 100 days yet the country has fallen further into crises in sugar, garlic, onion, salt, oil prices, and other basic commodities, while wages remain low,” said KMU chair Elmer Labog.
“Because of the rising cost of basic commodities, the true value of wages has further dropped,” he added.
Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jose Advincula asked Filipinos not to forget lessons learned from the martial law era, like respect for life and human rights, development anchored on justice and peace, and fighting for truth.
He said Filipinos also learned the value of democracy and power of the people, as well as faith in God.
De Guia said the commemoration serves as a “reminder of what it means to lose freedoms and the arduous path to regaining them.”
“The Commission on Human Rights joins the country in remembering this day – the sacrifices of Filipinos, both sung and unsung – as well as to remind the important place of democracy, rule of law, and human rights in a free society in ensuring that the dignity and rights of all is respected and upheld,” said De Guia.
Until now, she said, the CHR needs to stress the importance of truth and truth-seeking in addressing human rights violations.
“Without truth, there can be no justice. And as time can make memories vulnerable, we call on every Filipino to similarly protect our history and the truth captured in the country’s collective experience during the 1972 martial law as an important facet of achieving transitional justice,” she said.
She said the martial law should be remembered “not because we are stuck, but because there are lessons to remember and teach present and future generations.”
“We remember so that democracy will endure and, together, we become a better nation,” De Guia said.
‘CONSULTATIONS’
Lagman, in his speech, laughed off Marcos’ denial that his father was a dictator because of so-called “consultations” regularly conducted by his father in Malacañang.
“Mr. Speaker, when an authoritarian leader with vast powers consults with favored sectors, these stakeholders will merely concur with the despot’s self-serving desires or decisions. In the context of the Marcos martial law when dissent was conveniently stifled, consultation inevitably was a farce,” he said.
Lagman reminded his colleagues that upon his declaration of martial law, Marcos padlocked Congress and exercised legislative powers by issuing a series of executive issuances that have the force of law, without any consultation with the people or stakeholders.
While “filial defense is understandable,” Lagman said, “history does not lie in documenting the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. during his martial law regime.”
“His son’s denials do not and cannot change the horrors of the past. It cannot repeal statutes and overturn Supreme Court decisions indubitably documenting the atrocities and banalities of the Marcos dictatorship. It must be conceded that the President has the right to his own opinion but he does not have a right to his own reality,” he said.
Lagman said that for as long as Marcos Jr. continues to insist that his father was never a dictator, he will “forever be known as the “son of the dictator Marcos.” — With Gerard Naval
