THE Edsa revolution in those historic days of Feb. 22-25, 1986 could not have happened were it not for the brutality of the Marcos dictatorship.
When martial law was imposed by Ferdinand Marcos in September 1972, liberal democracy that Filipinos practiced for decades was shattered with one bold stroke of Mr. Marcos.
More than 70,000 were arrested and detained in various military camps throughout the country. All media outlets were closed and the Supreme Court was castrated. Congress was padlocked on orders of Ferdinand Marcos and the chief enforcer of martial law – then defense secretary Juan Ponce Enrile.
When Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law and became a dictator for almost 14 years, the country reeled and suffered under the impact of massive human rights violations and the plunder of the national economy by the dictator and his cronies.
The Marcos dictatorship caused the brutal murder of 3,257 activists and dissenters, over 2,520 salvage victims and the arrest and detention of almost 70,000 youth leaders, students, union organizers, peasant leaders, religious leaders, and the disappearances of more than 2,000 social activists like Redemptorist priest Rudy Romano.
The unprecedented plunder of the nation’s wealth during the Marcos dictatorship aggravated the country’s poverty with the number of Filipinos living below the poverty line doubled from 18 million in 1965 to 35 million in February 1986. The dictator also left behind a staggering foreign debt of $27 billion.
The U.S. military and economic support to prop up the Marcos dictatorship did not stop the mounting resistance of the oppressed Filipinos. Thus, in those four unforgettable days, the people ended their national nightmare and ousted the Marcos family and their minions from power.
What is the deeper meaning of Edsa as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of People Power? To me, Edsa was not only removing a dictator but a continuing revolution to preserve our restored democracy by exercising wisely our sacred right of suffrage to end corruption and poverty, protect human rights and prevent the emergence of potential dictators.
We must reject presidential bets like Rodrigo Duterte who worship and idolize the dictator Ferdinand Marcos, and who has shown his inclination to be a future dictator by promising to establish a revolutionary government and abolish Congress if he cannot solve the country’s problems.
We must reject candidates like Bongbong Marcos who, despite his being a conscious beneficiary of his father’s dictatorship and stolen wealth, refuses to apologize to the nation for his father’s crimes and excesses.
We must reject corrupt candidates like Jejomar Binay who, aside from advocating and practicing political dynasties like the Marcoses, continue to defy public opinion by shamelessly refusing to answer the charges of corruption and unexplained wealth. We must denounce candidates like Duterte, Binay and Escudero for their advocacy of allowing the burial of the dictator at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.
The May 9, 2016 elections is therefore a litmus test whether the Filipino people are still capable of launching a continuing revolution for decency and freedom, or whether we will allow the Marcoses, the potential autocrats, the plunderers and Marcos admirers to mock the graves of those who died fighting the Marcos dictatorship.--Democrito C. Barcenas