ASKING QUESTIONS
In Memoriam
Archimedes Trajano
We
are born inquisitive. Even in the womb we ask questions. We are sentient
creatures, agog at our sensible experience of life—darkness, light, color,
sound, softness, a mother’s bosom, sweetness, her fragrant milk. Time passes, a
flock of birds. We learn about rocks and knives—bitterness of boiled
vegetables, raw agony of skinned knees, sudden terror when we are abandoned. We
discover how to step around dangers, deftly avoid them.
We
do not use language all at once. When we do, we ask questions like, Where does the wind come from? Why is the
sky blue? How do birds fly? Our teachers ask us, Any questions? We are encouraged to think critically, taking apart
the world the same way you disassemble an electric fan.
Questions
grow green everywhere. Waiters smile, nodding. Anything else? Broadcast journalists badger their respondents,
angling for the sound bite. You said…? Medical
doctors probe, detective work. How long
has this been going on? Scientists set forth hypotheses. Engineers detail
specifications. Creative writers forge plots. Artists conceive works of art.
Thinkers of every stripe, philosophers, theologians, children, naïve as newly
washed fruit—all ask questions.
Some
questions you do not ask, ordinarily. How
much do you weigh? Are you pregnant? What sins did you confess to the priest?
Twenty-one
years old, I asked one question too soon, too late—too soon to confront the
daughter of a tyrant, too late to take it back. Must the National Youth Council be headed by the president’s daughter? Bodyguards
forcibly detained me, beat me, tortured me. Tossed me out a second-story
window. I no longer ask questions.
Originally published in vox poetica (August 22, 2016)
 |
| 59-year-old Imee Marcos at the opening of the Pagudpod, Ilocos Norte wind farm |
Photo courtesy of Ilocos Norte
ReplyDeletePhoto link:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ilocosnorte/15213971893
Gonzalinho
Translator’s Note:
ReplyDeleteIn order to reach a broad English-speaking audience, “Kabataang Barangay” is translated “National Youth Council.”
Contributor’s Note:
The prose poem takes as its motif the torture and murder of Archimedes Trajano during the martial law regime of Marcos. References are attached.
Second in a series of three, the poem responds to Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s expressed intention to bury Marcos at the Cemetery of Heroes (Libingan ng mga Bayani). Duterte recently authorized Marcos’ burial on September 18, 2016. See:
Dancel, Raul. (August 7, 2016). Philippines’ Duterte Says Former Dictator Marcos Can Be Buried at Heroes’ Cemetery. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/philippines-duterte-gives-go-ahead-for-former-dictator-marcos-burial-at-heroes-cemetery
The poem protests Duterte’s action by inciting remembrance of the heinous crimes committed under Marcos’ command responsibility.
REFERENCES
Agapita Trajano; Archimedes Trajano, Plaintiffs-Appellees v. Ferdinand E. Marcos, Defendant, and Imee Marcos-Manotoc, Defendant-Appellant, 116 A.L.R.Fed. 765, 61 USLW 2257 (978 F.2d 493 1992). Retrieved from http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/research/Philippines/Trajano%20v%20Marcos,%20%20978%20F%202d%20493.pdf
Ang Lagalag. (June 2, 2016). The Torture and Death of Archimedes Trajano. Never Again. Never Forget. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/photos/a.206942782796206.1073741828.206869209470230/643069039183576/?type=3&theater
Ang Lagalag. (November 5, 2015). The Torture and Death of Archimedes Trajano. Never Again. Never Forget. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/photos/a.206942782796206.1073741828.206869209470230/545534012270413/?type=3&theater
Cockcroft, Lucy. (January 8, 2010). The Children’s Questions that Parents Find It Toughest to Answer. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/6945976/The-childrens-questions-that-parents-find-it-toughest-to-answer.html
deodorante. (February 11, 2016). Not Just the Sin of the Father. Hindi Kami Ulyanin: Remember 1081. Retrieved from https://remember1081.wordpress.com/tag/archimedes-trajano/
Fernandez, Erwin S. (July 9, 2014). The Curse Called ‘Political Dynasty.’ Rappler. Retrieved from http://www.rappler.com/move-ph/ispeak/62813-curse-political-dynasty
Macas, Trisha. (May 23, 2016). Duterte: Marcos Burial at Libingan ng mga Bayani ‘Can Be Arranged Immediately.’ GMA News Online. Retrieved from http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/567337/news/nation/duterte-marcos-burial-at-libingan-ng-mga-bayani-can-be-arranged-immediately#sthash.60UCCkAB.dpuf
Moss, Debra Cassens. (October 1989). Marcos Suits: Plaintiffs Claim Torture by Former Philippines President. ABA Journal: The Lawyer’s Magazine, 75(10), 44. Retrieved from https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=EH4Ki4lXZ9YC&lpg=PA44&dq=archimedes+trajano+tortured&pg=PA44&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=archimedes%20trajano%20tortured&f=false
Rodis, Rodel. (May 18, 2011). Why PNoy Copped Out. Inquirer.net. Retrieved from http://globalnation.inquirer.net/1894/why-pnoy-copped-out
Sison, Shakira. (September 23, 2015). #NeverAgain: Martial Law Stories Young People Need to Hear. Rappler. Retrieved from http://www.rappler.com/views/imho/106827-martial-law-stories-hear
The Torture and Death of Archimedes Trajano. (October 16, 2015). Bantayog ng mga Bayani. Retrieved from http://www.bantayog.org/?p=1042
V., Marc. (n.d.) 10 Lesser Known Photos from Martial Law Years That Will Blow You Away. FilipiKnow. Retrieved from http://www.filipiknow.net/lesser-known-martial-law-photos/
Gonzalinho
This year National Heroes’ Day in the Philippines is August 29, 2016, the last Monday of August, not, as earlier reported, the fourth Monday of August.
ReplyDeleteNational Heroes’ Day 2016 coincides with the feast of the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist, a felicitous coincidence because Saint John the Baptist is one of the outstanding “political saints” who spoke truth to power and was martyred for his courage.
Today we honor as heroes Archimedes Trajano and the many who resisted the political oppression of the Marcos regime, sometimes at the cost of their own lives.
Gonzalinho
REMEMBER OUR HEROES
ReplyDelete“Our forefathers were heroes. But why were they heroes? Because they fought for democracy. They fought for the life and liberty of the Filipino people. They fought for our independence, our freedom. They fought against tyranny, totalitarianism, and dictatorship. They fought for us and that is something we must be grateful for.”
Pi Sigma Fraternity Alumni Association, Inc. (PSFAAI)
Link: https://www.facebook.com/PSFAAI/photos/a.452675284765898.107833.272113842822044/1279424382090980/?type=3&pnref=story
Gonzalinho
NEVER FORGET
ReplyDeleteThe day was Aug. 31, 1977. This Wednesday, we commemorate the forced disappearance and vengeful killing of Archimedes Trajano. It has been 39 long years since it happened, but disremember it we cannot opt to do. And neither should the Filipino people and their country’s 46-percent millennial population, let alone the principal figure of that ill-fated day—Imee Marcos.
Today we write without fear of the Marcoses and we should, for history is still being written. That wasn’t so 39 years ago. Trajano was taken away in Imee’s very presence precisely because he had that daring in an atmosphere of dread. He showed us the way. He is a martyr-hero.
Trajano’s killing may have been routine in a regime that numbed people from effective and rightful opposition. But no, killing can never be routine. Mere criticism of the Marcoses was a ground for one’s extrajudicial death sentence. Imee Marcos—and I hope she reads this—is not only alive today; she wields political power as though the glory days of their bacchanalian reign had never ended. We are all the more obliged to refuse to consign this family to our collective amnesia. It is not the reverse of “moving on”—the evils wrought upon us in the past, as a nation, must always lead us to a constant reevaluation of who we are as a nation. Only when we do so can we move on.
...In Trajano’s bloodied body we see the blood of thousands of martyrs the Marcos regime had sacrificed on the altar of dictatorship and tyranny. May we see this on the road to the Libingan ng mga Bayani.
We must remain outraged. We must remain outraged. Otherwise, we are a nation of cowards.
Link: http://opinion.inquirer.net/96891/neverforget-killing-archimedes-trajano/amp
Gonzalinho
HEROES START WITH A QUESTION
ReplyDelete[Delivered by Senator Risa Hontiveros last August 27, 2016 at Centro Escolar University, Manila during the Leadership Congress 2016. Photo c/o CEU-Manila Student Council]
Thirty-nine years ago on August 31st 1977, a young man named Archimedes Trajano, Archie to friends and family, dared to ask a question. Like many of you, he was young, promising, and brave. He was a student of Mapua Institute of Technology, 21 years old then, and was in a conference just like this. The speaker was Imee Marcos, the daughter of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Sr.
The older Marcos was the most powerful man in the country, being the President of the Republic. She was the head of Kabataang Barangay, a youth institution of the Martial Law regime. Young and brave as he was, Archie stood up. “In what capacity are you leading the Kabataan Barangay? Is it for the sole reason of being the daughter of the President?” he asked Imee who was on-stage. “How do you respond to the allegations that your father has been jailing his critics and activists?” he added.
There was never an answer to these questions. Archie was seen by his friends and classmates escorted out by Imee’s security personnel. A lot were confused, “What is happening? Was it wrong to ask questions? Where is Archie being brought to?” Archie went missing for several days. September 2, 1977: his body was found in one of the streets in Manila, mangled and bathing in his own blood.
Archie’s is one of the many stories of heroism. On Monday, our country will be commemorating National Heroes’ Day and as we approach that day, let me share my first point: heroes start with a question.
Millennial student leaders, questions are a powerful thing and are crucial in leadership. Nineteenth century philosopher Susanne Langer said, “The ‘technique,’ or treatment, of a problem begins with its first expression as a question”. A question is a powerful weapon as it incites critical thinking, the framing of a problem and even the basic recognition that there is a problem. Dictators, on the other hand, fear questions, but transformative leadership begs for them.
Link: https://www.facebook.com/notes/senator-risa-hontiveros/heroes-start-with-a-question/10153929143623182
Gonzalinho
JUSTICE DENIED
ReplyDeleteThe Supreme Court has voided proceedings of a civil case against Ilocos Norte Rep. Imee Marcos to enforce an American court ruling that she pay $4.4 million to the family of Archimedes Trajano, a student believed to have been killed by her security escorts in 1977.
In an 18-page decision penned by Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco, Jr., the Supreme Court’s third division declared as null and void the Court of Appeals (CA) decision dated Oct. 11, 1994 which ordered the Pasig RTC Branch 163 to junk Marcos’ motion to dismiss the case because the summons were not properly served to her.
Trajano, then a 21-year-old student at the Mapua Institute of Technology, had stood up in an open forum on August 1977 to question the eldest daughter of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos on her capability to lead the youth.
The nation was then under martial law and headed the national youth organization Kabataang Barangay and was at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila where she addressed thousands of students.
Trajano told Marcos that she would not have assumed a leadership position if she was not the presidential daughter. He also questioned her on her father's role in human rights violations.
On Sept. 2, 1977, the bloodied body of Trajano was found on the streets of Manila.
The student’s parents were told he got into a dormitory fight.
Witnesses later came forward to testify that Trajano was last seen being forcibly removed from the university forum by Marcos’ security escorts.
It is believed Trajano was tortured for 12 to 36 hours before he died.
His mother sued Marcos before the US district court in Honolulu, Hawaii, on March 20, 1986, barely a month after the Marcos family fled the country following the EDSA people power that year.
In 1991, the US court awarded $4.4 million to the Trajano family.
The Trajano family filed a civil case with the Pasig regional trial court (RTC) in 1993 seeking to collect on the compensation from Marcos.
The Supreme Court's ruling on Thursday in favor of Marcos declared that the Pasig RTC lacked jurisdiction to conduct proceedings because its sheriff failed to serve the summons to Marcos and explain why he had failed to do so.
Court records showed that on July 6, 1993, the Pasig RTC issued summons against Marcos addressed to Alexandra Condominium Corporation at Meralco Avenue, Pasig City.
The summons and a copy of the complaint were served on July 15, 1993 to Macky dela Cruz, an alleged caretaker of Marcos at the Alexandra condominium.
The Pasig RTC declared Marcos in default in an order dated Oct. 13, 1993 for failure to heed to the summons.
The high court in its ruling, however, said the Pasig RTC also failed to comply with the requirements that the summons must be left with a person of suitable age and discretion, residing in the defendant’s house or residence.
In her motion to dismiss filed before the Pasig RTC, Marcos presented her Philippine passport and the disembarkation card issued by the immigration service of Singapore to show that she was a resident of Singapore.
Link: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/13405/news/nation/high-court-voids-case-vs-imee-over-1977-killing-of-student#sthash.Zgm5RSMs.dpuf
God then said: What have you done? Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground! (Genesis 4:10)
Gonzalinho
NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY PROTESTS: MARCOS IS NOT A HERO
ReplyDelete“Ahead of the Supreme Court oral arguments on Wednesday, activists, Martial Law victims, their families and relatives, stages a rally at the Bonifacio Shrine in Manila and at the University of the Philippines in Diliman on National Heroes Day, Aug. 29, to protest the Marcos burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.”
Link: https://www.facebook.com/rapplerdotcom/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1306045502749563
“Muling nagtipon-tipon ang mga biktima ng Martial Law para tutulan ang planong hero's burial para kay dating Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos.”
Link: https://www.facebook.com/CNNPhilippines/videos/1770343773205514/?pnref=story
Gonzalinho
MARCOS FAMILY TAINTED BY MARCOS PLUNDER
ReplyDeleteImee hidden wealth:
https://www.icij.org/offshore/ferdinand-marcos-daughter-tied-offshore-trust-caribbean
https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/videos/667415076748972/
Imee Marcos’ children are beneficiaries of secret British Virgin Islands offshore trust:
https://www.facebook.com/samasakm/videos/vb.1165506066816235/1225019040864937/?type=2&theater
Bongbong blocking release of Arelma funds to the Filipino people:
http://kickerdaily.com/posts/2016/04/pcgg-bongbong-not-the-govt-blocking-awards-martial-law-victims/
Imelda, Imee, and Bongbong are scofflaws:
https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/photos/a.206942782796206.1073741828.206869209470230/663968043760342/?type=3
Philippine government wins ill-gotten wealth case against Marcoses, Alfonso Lim family:
http://www.rappler.com/nation/117880-pcgg-wins-case-marcos-alfonso-lim-taggat-industries
Philippine government asks Sandiganbayan to forfeit Imelda’s 3 artwork collections:
http://www.rappler.com/nation/138485-osg-imelda-marcos-art-collection-sandiganbayan
The Marcos family continues to hide, use, and enjoy the father's plunder.
Gonzalinho
BAN MARCOS SCOFFLAWS FROM PUBLIC OFFICE
ReplyDeleteThe Marcos family should be banned by law from holding public office because they continue to use the father's plunder to undermine and subvert the proper and effective operation of Philippine democracy.
They are scofflaws who show contempt for final judicial rulings of colossal magnitude and importance in U.S. and Philippine jurisdictions, by not complying with them. Marcos scofflaws should not be allowed to hold public office because their public service is always at major risk of betrayal of the public trust and as scofflaws their holding public office is itself already a betrayal of public trust.
Gonzalinho
MARCOS PLUNDER: FINAL JUDICIAL RULINGS OF THE PHILIPPINE SUPREME COURT
ReplyDelete1. SC affirms forfeiture of Marcos’ $40-M Arelma assets
The Supreme Court has affirmed with finality its 2012 ruling forfeiting the almost $40-million Arelma assets of former president Ferdinand Marcos.
The Arelma funds represented assets of the former strongman originally worth $2-million deposited with Merrrill Lynch Securities in New York in 1972 under the Arelma S.A., a Panamanian corporation. The fund has increased from $2 million to about $40-million.
Bongbong Marcos, in his motion argued that the Sandiganbayan has no jurisdiction to hear the forfeiture case on the Arelma property.
The high court said the anti-graft court “found that the totality of assets and properties acquired by the Marcos spouses was manifestly and grossly disproportionate to their aggregate salaries as public officials and that petitioners were unable to overturn the prima facie presumptions of ill-gotten wealth.”
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/590898/sc-affirms-forfeiture-of-marcos-40-m-arelma-assets
2. Republic of the Philippines vs. Honorable Sandiganbayan (Special First Division), Ferdinand E. Marcos, et al. [G.R. No. 152154. July 15, 2003]:
In the face of undeniable circumstances and the avalanche of documentary evidence against them, respondent Marcoses failed to justify the lawful nature of their acquisition of the said assets. Hence, the Swiss deposits should be considered ill-gotten wealth and forfeited in favor of the State in accordance with Section 6 of RA 1379:
SEC. 6. Judgment.─ If the respondent is unable to show to the satisfaction of the court that he has lawfully acquired the property in question, then the court shall declare such property forfeited in favor of the State, and by virtue of such judgment the property aforesaid shall become property of the State x x x.
Link: http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2003/jul2003/152154.htm
Petitioner Marcoses was denied with finality on November 18, 2003:
http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2012/april2012/189434.htm
Gonzalinho
ANG LAGALAG ON MARCOS PLUNDER:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/videos/692592304231249/
Ang Lagalag is a very informative source than can be checked against sources with stronger reputations.
Gonzalinho
MARCOS INCOME DISCREPANCY
ReplyDeleteLinks:
https://www.facebook.com/News5Everywhere/videos/584445255045566/
http://www.lawphil.net/judjuris/juri2003/jul2003/gr_152154_2003.html
Gonzalinho
MARCOS CRONY CAPITALISM
ReplyDeleteLink: https://www.facebook.com/PilipinasKongMinamahal/videos/944309302348374/
Gonzalinho
MARTIAL LAW REGIME OF LIES
ReplyDeleteWithin a few hours, newspapers were shut down and TV and radio stations pulled off the air; hundreds of people the Marcoses considered dangerous were rounded up, and thousands of soldiers controlled the streets. In other words, the historical fact of Marcos’ seizure of absolute power took place in the last hours of Sept. 22 and the first hours of Sept. 23—but dictatorial caprice rewrote the history books.
Marcos invested himself in that original lie; he even decreed that Sept. 21 be commemorated every year as National Thanksgiving Day. But that, too, was a fabrication. He, his wife and family, his cronies, his favored military officers, had billions of reasons to feel grateful, but the nation itself had nothing to be thankful for.
Why is it important to emphasize that martial law was, in fact, imposed on another date? Because this founding lie symbolizes the infrastructure of deceit that the martial law regime, the entire Marcosian edifice of constitutional authoritarianism, was built on. Because the fact that too many Filipinos do not know the true date demonstrates the lasting legacy of martial law propaganda. And because that Marcos propaganda machine is revving up again.
There were other, more consequential lies. It simply wasn’t true, as Marcos apologist Teodoro M. Valencia once argued in an international publication, that ours was a “smiling Martial Law.” Thousands of people died extrajudicially, many more were tortured or savaged, and students who dared ask the dictator’s eldest daughter impertinent questions in public disappeared.
It simply wasn’t true, as the dictator’s namesake son once argued, that we were on our way to becoming another Singapore, when his father was forced to flee the presidential palace. By the early 1980s, the real effects of the systematic and large-scale plunder of the economy could no longer be obscured. In 1983, after Ninoy Aquino was assassinated by Marcos’ soldiers, the economy neared collapse.
And it simply wasn’t true, as the dictator himself argued over and over again, that the communist insurgency in 1972 was massive enough, had strength and momentum enough, to pose a clear and present national security threat to the Republic. American officials in both the US Embassy in Manila and at the State Department warned Philippine officials that the threat was highly exaggerated. But like the foreign debt incurred by Marcos, the communist insurgency during the martial law years grew dramatically, and by roughly the same proportion: about thirtyfold.
It has taken us over a generation to recover economically from the Marcos plunder, but the political and cultural costs of those dark years continue to be carried in our collective books of account. In part that is because the lies and deceits and half-truths propagated by the Marcoses were repeated so often, drummed into the national subconscious so relentlessly, that many Filipinos mistake them as real. And in part that is because the Marcoses never really left. Only the dictator died in consuming exile; everyone else returned. In 1992, Imelda even ran for president. Today she remains what she always was: a celebrity, famous for being famous, notorious for her notoriety. She acts as though her glamour, diminished as it is, can bury the unpleasant truth. We must set history right.
Link: http://opinion.inquirer.net/78674/regime-of-lies#ixzz4ImXt2La2
Besides committing the crimes of murder, torture, human rights violations, and plunder, Marcos was also an inveterate liar. MARCOS IS NOT A HERO.
Gonzalinho
MORE MARCOS LIES
ReplyDeleteMarcos the Corpse has already been buried. He now lies still—pun intended. He needs a burial no more. It is just all necropolitics.
It is time we disabused ourselves of the canard that the body one sees in Batac is that of Marcos.
Link: http://opinion.inquirer.net/96516/no-refrigerated-crypt#ixzz4ImZMlsT7
File No. 60: Marcos’ invented heroism
Link: http://news.abs-cbn.com/focus/07/02/16/file-no-60-marcos-invented-heroism
My favorite Marcos lie: The Tasaday
Link: http://www.philstar.com/supreme/2016/02/27/1557062/my-favorite-marcos-lie-tasaday
“I have committed so many sins in my life, but stealing money from the people, from the government is not one of them.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bJAOzL83CI
“Don’t you think that two terms is enough for any man?”
https://www.facebook.com/eufemio.agbayani/posts/10202586576580872
Gonzalinho
MARTIAL LAW STATISTICS
ReplyDeleteKILLED, TORTURED, IMPRISONED, SALVAGED
Link: https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/photos/a.206942782796206.1073741828.206869209470230/662944813862665/?type=3&pnref=story
DESAPARECIDOS
Link: https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/photos/a.206942782796206.1073741828.206869209470230/693991997424613/?type=3&pnref=story
FACT-CHECKING TOTAL KILLED
Link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=664495750374238&id=206869209470230&substory_index=0
HAWAII CLASS ACTION SUIT VICTIMS
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/740483099426953
HUMAN RIGHTS VICTIMS CLAIMS BOARD
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/745174635624466
MARCOS PLUNDER UP TO $10B
Link: http://news.abs-cbn.com/video/focus/08/23/16/nakaw-na-yaman-ni-marcos-abot-ng-10-bilyon
LIFE UNDER MARCOS: A FACT CHECK
Link: https://www.facebook.com/206869209470230/videos/685314144959065/
Gonzalinho
NO TO MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN: A GROWING BALL OF STICKY RICE
ReplyDeleteVICE PRESIDENT LENI ROBREDO
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/741676865974243
SENATOR NENE PIMENTEL
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/805054/nenes-suggestion-libingan-ng-mga-bayani-at-iba-pa
SENATOR KIKO PANGILINAN
Links:
https://www.facebook.com/kikopangilinan/posts/10153933645936936
http://kikopangilinan.com/transcript-sen-pangilinans-interview-marcos-burial-senate-session-hall/
https://www.facebook.com/kiko.pangilinan.fanpage/videos/10154406209673200/
SENATOR RISA HONTIVEROS
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/804444/heros-burial-for-marcos-will-cause-divisiveness-reopen-wounds
SENATOR ALAN PETER CAYETANO
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oz4Ed7jeyM
SENATOR BAM AQUINO
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/740394982769098
CONGRESSMAN EDCEL LAGMAN
Link: http://www.rappler.com/nation/142498-lagman-marcos-burial-libingan-ng-mga-bayani-undeserved-reward
MARIA SERENA DIOKNO, NATIONAL HISTORICAL COMMISSION OF THE PHILIPPINES (NHCP) CHAIRPERSON
“That's why history is important. You can move on after you have come to terms with the past. But if you bury the past – in this case, it would be, you literally bury it – I don't see how you can come to terms with it,” Maria Serena Diokno told Rappler on Monday, August 15.
“But in this case, there seems to be even a refusal to come to terms with the facts of the past,” she added.
The NHCP had earlier objected to the transfer of the dictator's remains to the Libingan from Ilocos Norte, citing “lies” and “factual inconsistencies” by Marcos about his time as a soldier during World War II.
After conducting a study, the commission questioned Marcos’ supposed war medals and his alleged leadership of a guerrilla unit, Ang Mga Maharlika.
“How do you explain to young people, to students [that] well, you know, there were so many questions – in fact, he lied about the medals – but, anyway, he belongs to the cemetery of heroes. There seems to be an incongruence there,” Diokno said.
Link: http://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/rich-media/143398-nhcp-chairperson-diokno-marcos-burial
DEAN MEL STA. MARIA, FAR EASTERN UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE OF LAW
Links:
https://www.raissarobles.com/2016/08/09/dean-mel-sta-maria-may-have-found-the-argument-to-tro-marcos-burial-at-libingan/
http://interaksyon.com/article/131250/mel-sta--maria--burying-marcos-at-the-libingan-ng-mga-bayani-violates-the-law
COALITION AGAINST THE MARCOS BURIAL IN LIBINGAN NG MGA BAYANI
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/740698436072086
ROMAN CATHOLIC PRELATES
Link: http://www.mb.com.ph/catholic-prelates-oppose-marcos-burial-at-libingan-ng-mga-bayani/
ASSOCIATION OF MAJOR RELIGIOUS SUPERIORS IN THE PHILIPPINES
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/746909342117662
CATHOLIC EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF THE PHILIPPINES (CEAP)
Links:
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/806154/catholic-schools-join-call-vs-granting-heros-burial
http://www.cbcpnews.com/cbcpnews/?p=82434
JESUIT INSTITUTIONS AND INDIVIDUALS
Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qNGRr82uqyO4oTeWFS85r8ESJPyQkVyrXxgarpqWxfo/mobilebasic?pli=1
To be continued
NO TO MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN: A GROWING BALL OF STICKY RICE (continued)
ReplyDeleteAUGUST 14, 2016 CITIZEN’S ASSEMBLY AT LUNETA PARK
Link: http://www.rappler.com/nation/143009-photos-citizens-rally-versus-marcos-heros-burial
CORDILLERA PEOPLES ALLIANCE: NO TO MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN
Link: http://www.nordis.net/2016/08/statements-no-to-burial-of-ferdinand-e-marcos-at-libingan-ng-mga-bayani/
CEBU CITIZENS' ASSEMBLY AGAINST THE MARCOS BURIAL IN LNMB
Link: http://x.rappler.com/x/justine-balane/1471772149316-Groups-remember-Martial-Law-martyrs-with-prayers?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=referral
NEGROS OCCIDENTAL-BASED CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS
Link: http://www.rappler.com/nation/143607-no-hero-burial-marcos-negros-occidental
KONSENSYA DABAW
Link: http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/21/16/davao-group-protests-marcos-burial-at-libingan-ng-mga-bayani
NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS OF THE PHILIPPINES
Link: https://www.facebook.com/NUSPhilippines/posts/10154599005294789
COLLEGE EDITORS GUILD OF THE PHILIPPINES
Link: http://www.cegp.org/2016/08/marcos-burial-in-libingan-ng-mga-bayani-a-grave-injustice-to-campus-press-martyrs-cegp/
PHILIPPINE DEBATE UNION (PDU)
“To bury Marcos at the Libingan would be morally reprehensible,” PDU said. “It is an injustice to the thousands of victims of Martial Law who, in their ongoing search for closure, had endured decades worth of suffering.”
According to Amnesty International, about 70,000 people were imprisoned while 34,000 were tortured and 3,240 were killed during Martial Law from 1972 to 1981. (READ: Worse than death: Torture methods during martial law)
“We call upon the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte to recognize this and discontinue his plan to give the former dictator the honor of a hero's burial,” PDU said.
For the group, matters concerning the Marcos administration “ARE NOT UP FOR A DEBATE.” [capitals mine]
“We urge the Filipino nation, especially the youth of today, to ask what is heroism? PDU believes that heroes are persons of integrity, honesty, and selflessness,” the group said.
“Gross violation of human rights warrants none of these traits.”
Link: http://www.rappler.com/nation/143764-philippine-debate-union-ferdinand-marcos-burial-libingan-bayani
UP DILIMAN UNIVERSITY STUDENT COUNCIL
Link: https://www.facebook.com/USCUPDiliman/posts/1110125352381171:0
UP COLLEGE OF SOCIAL WORK AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Link: https://www.facebook.com/gotobenrubs/media_set?set=a.10153870046160893.599080892&type=3
SANGGUNIAN NG MGA MAG-AARAL NG MGA PAARALANG LOYOLA NG ATENEO DE MANILA
Link: bit.ly/MBStand
SAN BEDA COLLEGE
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/743380399137223
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 GLOBAL PROTEST
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/745350332273563
FILAM VETERANS
Links:
http://justcliqit.com/filipino-veterans-in-the-us-no-to-marcos-burial-in-heroes-cemetery/
http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/19/16/veterans-group-join-protest-vs-marcos-heros-burial
FILAMS JOIN GLOBAL PROTEST VS. MARCOS BURIAL
Link: http://www.balitangamerica.tv/fil-ams-joining-global-protest-vs-marcos-burial/
SAN FRANCISCO FILAMS
Link: https://www.facebook.com/pierre.toussaint.338/posts/749030345238895
THE PRIDE OF THE LIVING
“For the Marcoses to insist on burying him at Libingan is no longer to honor his memory but to satisfy the pride of the living.”—Dennis Uy, Businessman, Pozorrubio, Pangasinan
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/807228/let-marcos-rest-in-peace
MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN: NO LEGITIMATE PUBLIC PURPOSE
Link: https://www.facebook.com/norie.castro/posts/10154396143205270
Many more…
Gonzalinho
SIX PETITIONS AGAINST MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN NOW BEFORE SUPREME COURT
ReplyDeleteLink: http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/08/24/1616728/sc-no-marcos-burial-libingan-next-20-days
Gonzalinho
LIBINGAN NG MGA BAYANI: A LEGAL HISTORY
ReplyDelete“On the one hand the Republic has disowned Marcos; on another, it holds him up as a heroic veteran.”
Link: http://www.spot.ph/newsfeatures/the-latest-news-features/67383/manuel-quezon-law-marcos-hero-a1507-20160811-lfrm2?ref=home_feed_1
Gonzalinho
1987 CONSTITUTION: OUR SHIELD AGAINST FUTURE DICTATORSHIPS
ReplyDeleteLink: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10208571835827313&set=gm.1778655339079273&type=3&pnref=story
Gonzalinho
SOLICITOR GENERAL SAYS MARCOS IS NOT A HERO
ReplyDeleteHow can a plunderer be interred in the Libingan ng mga Bayani? The Supreme Court in Republic of the Philippines v. Sandiganbayan, G.R. No. 152154, 15 July 2003, and in Marcos Jr. vs Republic, G.R. No. 189434, 25 April 2012, found Ferdinand Marcos guilty of amassing ill-gotten wealth and forfeited in favor of the Republic Marcos Swiss deposits in the amount of US$658 million and US$ 3.3 million, respectively.
Link: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10210782345504094&set=gm.1566275900348612&type=3&pnref=story
Even the Solicitor General agrees that Marcos was no hero. In his Comment to the Petitions against the Marcos burial, he admits that the chapter of Philippine history on martial law “is written in the blood and tears of recognized and unsung heroes; its every page is a shroud that has their bloodied but valiant faces on it; and each turn of these pages echoes their cry for freedom.” (Par. 203 of the Comment of the OSG). If that is so, there is no public purpose for the interment of Marcos in Libingan ng mga Bayani!
Link: https://www.facebook.com/duyanngmagiting/photos/a.277054095984326.1073741828.269851076704628/293581130998289/?type=3&pnref=story
Even the Solicitor General agrees that Marcos was no hero. In his Comment to the Petitions against the Marcos burial, he admits that the chapter of Philippine history on martial law “is written in the blood and tears of recognized and unsung heroes; its every page is a shroud that has their bloodied but valiant faces on it; and each turn of these pages echoes their cry for freedom.” (Par. 203 of the Comment of the OSG). He also admits that no amount of eulogy, gun salutes, holy anointment, and elaborate procession and rituals can change the dark pages of history during Martial Law. Philippine history is on the side of Petitioners and everybody who fought and died for democracy. If that is so, there is no public purpose for the interment of Marcos in Libingan ng mga Bayani!
Link: https://www.facebook.com/samasakm/photos/a.1165574830142692.1073741828.1165506066816235/1264237890276385/?type=3&pnref=story
Gonzalinho
REJOINDER TO DUTERTE
ReplyDeleteLink: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/567448/news/nation/phony-hero-marcos-doesn-t-deserve-libingan-ng-mga-bayani-burial
Duterte: “President Duterte stood by his decision to allow the burial of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani days after the Supreme Court provided relief to groups opposed to the burial.
“'This issue has divided the nation,' Duterte said in a press conference in Davao City. 'It’s a nation that refuses to heal a wound.'”
Rejoinder: Healing is accomplished not by denial but by admission, repentance, and reparation. Why do you suppose that the reparation for the Asian comfort women victimized by Imperial Japan remains such an enduring issue, fraught with overwhelming emotions? It is because the victims will be satisfied by those acts only on the part of the Japanese government that truly will bring them healing: genuine admission, sincere repentance, and reparation to the extent possible. This President-elect condones denial of Marcos’ crimes and thereby aggravates the injury. He binds the canker without treating the wound. If he were a doctor, his patients’ sores would fester incurably, and they would most certainly die of gangrene.
Kiko Pangilinan: Burying a murderer and a thief in the Libingan ng mga Bayani is not moving on...it is teaching our children to honor murderers and plunderers...it is not going to heal the nation nor will it unite us...it will only deeply divide us, reopen deep wounds of those who suffered, causing them to relive the gnawing pain and memory of loved ones jailed, tortured, murdered, salvaged, or who disappeared because of the tyranny and oppression of the dictatorship.
How can one forgive when there is neither remorse nor atonement on the part of the Marcos family?
Link: https://www.facebook.com/kiko.pangilinan.fanpage/posts/10154401151618200
Duterte: “But Duterte vowed to comply with whatever decision the SC would render and insisted that he was just following the law.
“'The law says that Marcos is qualified to be buried there, as a soldier. They are contesting whether Marcos was a hero. I don’t care. Whether he was a hero or not, he was a soldier... (With regard to the term) hero, politics is involved,' he said.”
Rejoinder: MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN IS ILLEGAL
You cannot separate the intention of the law from its implementation, and the intention of R.A. No. 289 is explicitly stated in Section one. The intention of the “National Pantheon” is “to perpetuate the memory of all the Presidents of the Philippines, national heroes and patriots" “for the inspiration and emulation of this generation and of generations still unborn.” Let's highlight that text: for INSPIRATION and EMULATION. Yes, Marcos was a Philippine president, but by no stretch of the imagination is he worthy of emulation and therefore he is not the subject of inspiration as well. His criminal record as a murderer, torturer, violator of human rights, and plunderer is solidly and comprehensively documented and thereby established even without a final criminal conviction, which he evaded through death. Documentation of Marcos' criminal character and deeds is buttressed in particular by national and international judicial rulings and legislative acts that explicitly testify accordingly.
Marcos' burial at the Cemetery of Heroes is illegal because it goes against the explicit letter of the law, not to mention its unmistakably manifest spirit. Marcos is not by any stretch of the imagination an object of INSPIRATION and EMULATION for Filipinos, indeed, of entire humanity.
To be continued
REJOINDER TO DUTERTE (continued page 2)
ReplyDeleteAnother law with a bearing on the decision to bury Marcos at Libingan is R.A. No. 10368, which states in Section two, Declaration of Policy:
“It is hereby declared the policy of the State to recognize the heroism and sacrifices of all Filipinos who were victims of summary execution, torture, enforced or involuntary disappearance and other gross human rights violations committed during the regime of former President Ferdinand E. Marcos covering the period from September 21, 1972 to February 25, 1986 and restore the victims’ honor and dignity.
“The State hereby acknowledges its moral and legal obligation to recognize and/or provide reparation to said victims and/or their families for the deaths, injuries, sufferings, deprivations and damages they suffered under the Marcos regime.
“Similarly, it is the obligation of the State to acknowledge the sufferings and damages inflicted upon persons whose properties or businesses were forcibly taken over, sequestered or used, or those whose professions were damaged and/or impaired, or those whose freedom of movement was restricted, and/or such other victims of the violations of the Bill of Rights.”
The above passage is explicit in declaring the obligation of the government (“the State”) “to RECOGNIZE and/or provide reparation to said victims and/or their families for the deaths, injuries, sufferings, deprivations and damages they suffered under the Marcos regime” [capitals mine] and “to ACKNOWLEDGE the sufferings and damages inflicted upon persons whose properties or businesses were forcibly taken over, sequestered or used, or those whose professions were damaged and/or impaired, or those whose freedom of movement was restricted, and/or such other victims of the violations of the Bill of Rights.” [capitals mine]
Manifestly, Marcos’ burial at Libingan assigns the title “hero” to Marcos and thereby repudiates and even denies claims well established by evidence that he is guilty of human rights violations and crimes of murder, torture, theft, and plunder. Furthermore, for the State to declare Marcos a “hero” fails to RECOGNIZE and ACKNOWLEDGE the victims of Marcos’ human rights violations and crimes of murder, torture, and plunder. His baptism as a “hero” contradicts the very recognition and acknowledgement of his crimes required by R.A. No. 10368, Section two. Therefore, Marcos’ burial at Libingan is inconsistent with and contravenes the explicit declaration of R.A. No. 10368, Section two.
We cannot honor Marcos as a "hero" and at the same time RECOGNIZE and ACKNOWLEDGE the victims of Marcos’ human rights violations and crimes of murder, torture, theft, and plunder, because the former honorific gives the lie to the latter affirmation.
Finally, we can cite the 1987 Constitution provisions which are invoked in R.A. No. 10368, Section two:
“ARTICLE II
“STATE POLICIES
“Section 11. The State values the dignity of every human person and guarantees full respect for human rights.”
R.A. No. 10368 also expounds: “Section 12 of Article III of the Constitution prohibits the use of torture, force, violence, threat, intimidation, or any other means which vitiate the free will and mandates the compensation and rehabilitation of victims of torture or similar practices and their families.”
By repudiating and even denying Marcos’ crimes, Marcos’ burial at Libingan contradicts state policies and the Bill of Rights, respectively, set forth in Articles II and III, respectively, of the 1987 Constitution.
To be continued
REJOINDER TO DUTERTE (continued page 3)
ReplyDeleteDuterte’s implicit invocation of AFPR G 161 374 is disingenuous. AFPR G 161 374 is the last of a series of implementing rules relating to the construction, development, and maintenance of the National Pantheon. It allows soldiers to be buried at Libingan ng mga Bayani, specifying two exceptions: “personnel who were dishonorably separated/ reverted/ discharged from the service and personnel who were convicted by final judgment of an offense involving moral turpitude.” As head of the executive branch of government and of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Duterte may change the regulations at any time, assuming the changes are consistent with law. When Duterte says, “The law says that Marcos is qualified to be buried there, as a soldier,” he in effect says, “I say that Marcos is qualified to be buried there, as a soldier,” because he has the power to revoke AFPR G 161 374 at any time, consistent with law.
In response to the argument that Marcos has a right to be buried at Libingan because he was a soldier, we point out that Adolph Hitler was a soldier too, decorated with the Iron Cross, and he did not falsify his medals, but he is not considered a hero. Marcos is not a hero either.
Duterte’s argument that Marcos’ status as a hero is merely a “political” issue does not render the question of his “hero” status irrelevant to his burial at Libingan, because the name of the cemetery is “Libingan ng mga Bayani” so that whoever is buried there partakes of the title “bayani” or “hero.” You do not bury Marcos at Libingan and at the same time deny he is a hero. When and if the Philippine state buries Marcos at Libingan, it pronounces a judgement that he is a hero.
We have argued many times over: MARCOS IS NOT A HERO. Marcos is a CRIMINAL. He is not an example for the people, youth, and children of this land, including the Ilocanos and Marcos loyalists. If the latter believe he should be buried as a hero, then they should be educated—education is the task of the National Pantheon, after all—concerning what is genuine heroism. Genuine heroism is not acting Marcos did, as the principal agent of crimes of murder, torture, human rights abuses, and plunder committed against his own people.
“Burying Marcos at the Libingan will also ‘whitewash all crimes he committed against the people and will send the wrong message to the world that in the Philippines, crime pays,’ said Ilagan, a torture victim during Martial Law.”
Link: https://www.raissarobles.com/2014/02/09/stopping-the-marcoses-from-erasing-their-crimes-from-history/
“It’s a key lesson to all grafters: Steal small, you end up in jail. You’ve got to steal big like the Marcoses.”
Link: https://www.raissarobles.com/2014/02/09/stopping-the-marcoses-from-erasing-their-crimes-from-history/
What is fundamentally at issue with respect to Marcos’ burial at Libingan, is the public condonation of his crimes by the Philippine state and the elevation of his moral turpitude as exemplary for the Philippine nation by assigning him the appellation of “hero.” Marcos must be presented to the nation as a man whose example, unworthy, exceptionally so, should not be condoned or recapitulated. It is for this reason that he must not be buried with the nation’s heroes. The principal motivation is instructive, didactic, indeed, patriotic. We do not want to honor Marcos with a hero's burial because this act sends the wrong message to our people, especially the youth and children of our land: Crime pays.
Gonzalinho
MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN: DUTERTE LACKS MORAL COMPASS
ReplyDeleteDAVAO CITY—President Duterte pointed to the number of votes that the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’s son, Bongbong, got in the vice presidential race to justify his decision to bury the late strongman at Libingan ng mga Bayani, a burial ground for soldiers and war heroes.
Mr. Duterte said the number of votes cast for Bongbong, who lost by a narrow margin to Vice President Leni Robredo, only showed that there is “no such thing as Marcos trauma” anymore among Filipinos.
Duterte, who is sticking to his decision to bury Marcos at Libingan amid growing opposition from martial law victims, said Marcos lost the vice presidential race by a mere 200,000 votes.
This only means that Filipinos have forgotten, or are no longer concerned over what happened during martial law, the President said.
“The number was very minimal,” Mr. Duterte said, referring to Robredo’s lead over Bongbong, a former senator.
“If that’s an indication, there was no such thing as a Marcos trauma (among the Filipino people),” he said.
...“If we are to play with the numbers game, yes, 14.15 million voted for Marcos Jr. but more did not vote for him,” said Mags Maglana, spokesperson of Konsensya Dabaw: Hugpong Dabawenyo para LNMBatac.
“Of the 26.91 million Filipinos who voted for the vice president position, 14.41 million Pinoys supported the winner who ran on an antidictatorship platform,” Maglana said. Germelina Lacorte, Inquirer Mindanao
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/809907/rody-poll-numbers-justify-marcos-burial
Duterte lapses into the classic logical fallacy of Argumentum Ad Populum or Bandwagon fallacy. He justifies burial of Marcos at Libingan based on the allegedly large number who do not oppose it. The fallacy in this age-old argument is that large numbers do not make a claim true or right.
We observe that Duterte never cites moral principles in his argument. When he cites legal principles, he sidesteps their moral aspects.
Duterte lacks moral compass.
Gonzalinho
FILIPINOS FORGET: DUTERTE WANTS TO ENCOURAGE IT
ReplyDeleteDAVAO CITY—President Duterte pointed to the number of votes that the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’s son, Bongbong, got in the vice presidential race to justify his decision to bury the late strongman at Libingan ng mga Bayani, a burial ground for soldiers and war heroes.
Mr. Duterte said the number of votes cast for Bongbong, who lost by a narrow margin to Vice President Leni Robredo, only showed that there is “no such thing as Marcos trauma” anymore among Filipinos.
Duterte, who is sticking to his decision to bury Marcos at Libingan amid growing opposition from martial law victims, said Marcos lost the vice presidential race by a mere 200,000 votes.
This only means that Filipinos have forgotten, or are no longer concerned over what happened during martial law, the President said.
“The number was very minimal,” Mr. Duterte said, referring to Robredo’s lead over Bongbong, a former senator.
“If that’s an indication, there was no such thing as a Marcos trauma (among the Filipino people),” he said.
...“If we are to play with the numbers game, yes, 14.15 million voted for Marcos Jr. but more did not vote for him,” said Mags Maglana, spokesperson of Konsensya Dabaw: Hugpong Dabawenyo para LNMBatac.
“Of the 26.91 million Filipinos who voted for the vice president position, 14.41 million Pinoys supported the winner who ran on an antidictatorship platform,” Maglana said.
Germelina Lacorte, Inquirer Mindanao
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/809907/rody-poll-numbers-justify-marcos-burial
Filipinos forget and Duterte wants to encourage this national malaise.
Gonzalinho