Friday, September 21, 2007 Speak out: Martial Law, goodbye and hello By Henry L. Yu, MD
DUMAGUETE City, Sept. 21, 1972.
The inevitable event happened that Thursday morning when radio station dySR announced the declaration of Martial Law all over the Philippines.
For us who were not activists, we rejoiced at the thought that classes were suspended.
On the other hand, we were also dead worried because we were graduating from college.
What if it would take months before classes would reopen?
Because of the suspension of classes, we hurriedly joined the long queue at the ticketing office of William Lines to purchase our boat tickets.
We were just as excited as the rest of humanity to be homeward bound, to be with family and friends back in our respective hometowns.
It was Iligan for me during that three-week break.
The airwaves were dominated by such songs like "Leaving on a Jet Plane," "Mac Arthur's Park," "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," among others.
It took a long time for Silliman to open again, probably the last of the private schools to resume classes for the simple reason that Silliman had a lot of activists and "rebels with a cause."
Classes finally resumed on Oct. 15, 1972, and we were back to school, to the so-called New Society or Bagong Lipunan, with the prescribed semi-army haircut at one-inch above the collar.
We were required to wear our university ID, otherwise it was "No ID, No Entry" to the campus.
It was a period of cessation from student activism and social unrest.
There was "peace and quiet and open air" with the birth of the New Society.
We led life like contented cows bound by a 7 p.m. curfew and certain prohibitions.
Night life was on an absolute zero point with us turning ourselves to reading our books and saying goodbye to cramming.
Yup, nowhere to go but home or dorm.
The year 1972 was the year when I was caught between goodbye and hello.
It was goodbye to four years of college life in the campus by the sea that is Silliman and hello to the "Queen City of the South" that is Cebu.
