The issue of where the remains of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos should be interred is not “dividing the nation,” as a news story in this paper described it. Or if the country is indeed “divided” about it, then it must be by a ratio of 90:10, that is, if the Marcos loyalists can even muster a measly 10 percent.
As so many have pointed out, the “public clamor” for the burial of the dictator has been barely felt or heard, except perhaps from his family, the surviving families of his cronies and supporters, and to stretch it a bit, maybe the folks in Marcos’ native Ilocos Norte.
Although, of course, counted among those “clamoring” for a Libingan ng mga Bayani resting place for the late strongman is President Duterte who, so far, has remained unfazed by growing public protests against his plans to grant Marcos a heroes’ burial. Mr. Duterte said his decision, made during a campaign stop in Ilocos Norte and, so he said, stemming from a lingering loyalty to FM and his family, remains firm. He is not backing down. He will not change his mind—yet.
And that is why survivors of the torture, illegal detention and attempted salvaging by soldiers under the knowing gaze of the dictator, as well those who may not have been around during the Marcos heyday but support the cause of martial law victims, have now run to the Supreme Court. Faced with Mr. Duterte’s intransigence, a group of martial law victims have filed a 30-page petition asking the high court “to nullify orders from the defense department and the military allowing (Marcos’) burial” in the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Such a burial, they said, is “illegal and contrary to law, public policy, morals and justice.”
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Striking for me is this passage from the petition, which submits that the planned interment “will send a cynical and odious message that Marcos is a hero and directly distorts the historical fact that he committed plunder and human rights violations during martial law thereby portraying human rights violations victims as liars for besmirching Marcos’ reputation as a hero.”
Such an act would also mean that the hundreds of thousands—millions if we count those who also gathered in public squares outside Metro Manila—who made a powerful show of “People Power” on Edsa in those fateful days of 1986, were wrong. Or maybe deluded. Or like the Jews of Jesus’ time, complicit in the persecution of an “innocent” man, nay, even a “hero.”
The burial of Marcos’ remains in the Libingan will result not only in cleansing his execrable record of human rights abuses, world-class thievery and fakery of his war exploits. It will at the same time obviate the heroism of thousands, perhaps millions, of Filipinos who braved the Marcos military and succeeded in throwing out a dictatorial regime; it will heap scorn on the very real deaths and suffering of all those who were summarily executed, “disappeared,” and tortured under the Marcos regime.
Perhaps the President’s insistence on a hero’s burial for the dictator is understandable, given that Mr. Duterte and the police and military forces under his authority are themselves facing charges of violating the human rights of hundreds of “suspects” killed in the name of the war on drugs. Maybe the administration wants Filipinos to forget the primacy and the value of human rights, and the need not just to respect them but to enforce them and place the highest value on them. So in a way, is President Du30 merely proving that he and the late Marcos are soul mates?
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A group of private business people, the Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands, is embarking on a campaign to lift not just the image but also the reputation of the country on the world stage.
By 2030, said chamber president Jose Luis Yulo, they seek to lift the Philippines from its current status, lagging behind our neighbors like Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, to their equal if not, perhaps, to Number One.
This they seek to do through the pursuit of what they call the “Five Pillars” of their advocacy.
First is education—providing the best education possible in “academics, technology, engineering, universal moral values, good manners and right conduct (what a quaint term!), implicative thinking and fluency in both English, Filipino and another language.”
Second is the transformation of leaders and workers in government into “the best, the brightest, the most honest and dedicated.” This in turn will result in the pursuit of policies and plans that will work best for the welfare of ordinary Filipinos.
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The third pillar is the building of infrastructure that is “comparable with the best in the world,” and the creation of an environment of efficiency and connectivity.
Fourth, the transformation of Filipinos into “global conquerors,” with Filipino-owned businesses enjoying dominant market share and revenues here, and also operating globally, creating a Filipino “brand” of quality.
Lastly, the emergence of an economy “that uses its minerals and natural resources as inputs to value-added manufacturing of end products within the country.” This also entails, said the group, achieving self-sufficiency in food and “creating wealth from manufacturing, niche upstream services, tourism and intellectual property.”
Would these “five pillars” be achievable by 2030? Certainly, they’re not impossible dreams!