Edsa 1986 from US state department records

Unlike the declassified US state department cables reporting on the events in Manila on Feb. 22, 1986, those for Feb. 23 and 24 have important details like names “excised” or erased. It will take a number of freedom of information requests or the future release of the complete documents for historians to piece the puzzle together.

Markings on these US government documents indicate their classification: RESTRICTED means the material in the document could cause “undesirable effects” if made public; CONFIDENTIAL would cause “damage” or be an issue of national security. Secret, may seem self-explanatory to us, but they come in two different levels: SECRET describes content which may cause “serious damage” to national security; TOP SECRET could cause “exceptionally grave” damage to national security if made public. Little wonder that documents former US presidents and vice presidents bring home and leave unattended are cause for concern and investigation. I wonder how sensitive government documents enter the Philippine National Archives, and how historians can access them.

On Feb. 23, the US Embassy in Manila reported on the civilian crowds around the two camps (Aguinaldo and Crame), the destruction of Radio Veritas facilities in Bulacan by armed plainclothes agents, Fidel V. Ramos doing a headcount and loyalty check of service commanders, etc. A request (name deleted) for light anti-tank weapons and 90-mm recoilless rifles was declined: “We poured cold water on the idea of US assistance.”

On Feb. 24, 1986, with Radio Veritas out of commission, government station PTV-4 was taken and was broadcasting anti-Marcos material. Crowds repelled attempts by government forces to retake the station. A US Embassy staffer in Malacañang reported that the Palace was “an armed camp, heavily ringed by troops in combat gear, and with the major Reception Hall and Ballroom converted to military barracks.”

Cory Aquino was sworn in as “provisional president” by Supreme Court Associate Justice Claudio Teehankee. “President Marcos was also sworn in at Malacañan Palace … only the first portion of the ceremony was carried by television and then the broadcast went dead. Neither Vice President-elect [Arturo] Tolentino nor Prime Minister [Cesar] Virata attended Marcos’ swearing-in.”

Meanwhile, back at Edsa, “the situation around Camps Crame and Aguinaldo remains tense, and the potential for violence as dusk approaches is extreme. We continue to get reports that troops loyal to [Fabian] Ver are preparing for an attack. Two battalions, one Marine, and one Army are in Camp Aguinaldo across the street from Camp Crame. They have some recoilless rifles and mortars. Some 1,200 Marines at the Ortigas intersection with Edsa have withdrawn. An Embassy observer reports, however, that 3,000 Marines have assembled at the Philippine Heart Center, less than a kilometer from Channel 4 with the mission to retake it and Channel 7. Crowds are immense, however, one police report had the crowd size at two million. Whatever the number, the density of people is hindering movement of any kind in the area, and in particular movement of military forces. An embassy observer told us at 1730 hours that Edsa is blocked completely with people for some three miles from Camp Crame to the Pasig River … the only military presence visible along Edsa was a small eight-man contingent of Marines, in full battle gear, being escorted by thousands of cheering people as they turned into Camp Crame apparently going over to the Ramos-Enrile forces.”

Malacañang and the San Miguel District appeared calm as of 1600 hours. “Troops are posted behind barbed wire barricades at all roads leading to the Palace and at Mendiola Bridge where they have a crowd of 800-1,000 people. [At nearby] Nagtahan bridge, an estimated 250 troops in full riot gear are confronting a crowd of 300-400 people…”

Nothing in the documents is new to historians, except for details left out of textbooks. Reading these primary sources made me remember and validate what I remember of Edsa 1986. I also wondered how differently events would have turned out if people then had today’s smartphones, drones, CCTV cameras, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok. These documents remind us to put the past in context. Instead of blaming Edsa for our social and political ills today, we must appreciate how history unfolded.

Comments are welcome at aocampo@ateneo.edu