SHARING ANECDOTES. Susan Quimpo, co-author of the book Subversive Lives: A Family Memoir of the Marcos Years, talked about the struggles of her brothers during the Martial Law years. Photo by Mario T. Dagdag

IN COMMEMORATION of the 40th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law, the History Department held a forum entitled “Old Society: Apparitions of a Dictatorship” at the Escaler Hall last September 19.

The event was co-organized with student political party Christian Union for Socialist and Democratic Advancement (Crusada).

Mark Bullo, Crusada Vice Minister for Externals and the main organizer of the event, said that the forum aimed to impart awareness of what transpired during Martial Law to the younger generation.

“It’s obvious that we’re forgetting Martial Law because our generation wasn’t born at that time,” Bullo said.

“So it’s dangerous that we might have the notion that amid the partly positive side, we might forget the negative side, [because of] which we should agree to say, ‘Never again to Martial Law.’”

History Department faculty member Brian Giron, also one of the organizers of the event, further said that the forum was a collaborative effort in tying some of Martial Law’s loose ends.

He said that it aimed to address the problem of historical revisionism wherein people reinvent the stories of the actual occurrences from 40 years ago. He said that such revisionists are trying to say that Martial Law was not as bad as how it is popularly portrayed.

“This [forum] is just a really simple solution, which is to bring actual experiences of Martial Law to the forefront—very literal and very real for a student who would be watching it,” he said.

The speakers present at the event were Susan Quimpo, co-author of the book Subversive Lives: A Family Memoir of the Marcos Years, Christina Pargas-Bawagan, a Martial Law underground activist, and Joseph Lim, a professor of the Economics Department.

Proclamation 1081, the declaration of Martial Law, was enforced on September 21, 1972, following its signing the previous day. This suspended the 1935 constitution, dissolved the Congress and granted then President Ferdinand Marcos the power of military rule.

It was filed under the pretext of an assassination attempt—later revealed to be staged—on former Defense Minister and current Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, and also pointed to the purportedly brewing communist insurgency following a series of bombings in Manila.

Bawagan shared that during the 1971 Constitutional Convention, a delegate named Eduardo Quintero received 18 envelopes containing bribes amounting to P11,150, allegedly from Imelda Marcos. These were handed out in order to ensure that the framing of a new constitution would be successful.

Sharing experiences

According to an Amnesty International Survey laid out by Bawagan, Marcos’ dictatorship tallied at least 10,000 cases of human rights violations.

These cases ranged from various forms of torture to enforced disappearances, including arbitrary detentions and murders of Ateneo alumni such as former Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr., Evelio Javier and Edgar Jopson.

Quimpo, whose brother Jun happened to be the husband of Bawagan, related how her family struggled during the time of Martial Law.

She talked about how her brothers, who were student activists and members of the New People’s Army (NPA) at that time, became victims of enforced disappearances and violence.

Jun Quimpo was murdered at the age of 24 back in 1981. Meanwhile, another brother, Jan Quimpo, disappeared back in 1977 and was never seen again.

The rising unrest among students eventually led to the prohibition of student assemblies, particularly of student organizations and governments.

“Kapag apat na kayong [nag-meeting], illegal assembly na iyon (If there are four of you who are meeting, that is already an illegal assembly),” recalled Quimpo.

Students resorted to meeting underground in order to advance their advocacies, such as addressing the lack of jobs that resulted from the government’s budget misuse.

In his presentation, Lim said that a significant portion of the budget was allocated for high-profile projects and infrastructures, contributing to the Philippines’ debt growth from 1975 to 1982.

What further aggravated the problem were Marcos’ alleged cronies, who “took hold of the pork barrel,” said Bawagan.

She cited Dewey Dee, an alleged crony of Marcos, who incurred huge bank debts associated with millions of dollars. This eventually saw foreign lenders pulling out their investments.

Aquino’s assassination also delivered a huge blow to the country’s economy.

“It came at the worst time in the Philippines because it caused massive capital flight out of the country,” said Lim.

Former President Corazon Aquino consequently struggled to decrease the debt percentage, only reducing it to half by the end of her term in 1992.

Repercussions today

Passed around during the forum was a petition requesting the passage of Senate Bill 2615, otherwise known as the “Human Rights Victims Compensation Act of 2010.”

This was done following the supposed decision of Senators Bongbong Marcos and Manny Villar to not support the measure.

The bill, which was filed by Senators Sergio Osmeña III and Francis Escudero, provides for the documentation of human rights violations during the Marcos regime and for the compensation funds of the victims.

Giron, however, said that financial compensation was not sufficient. “I dare not touch the idea of compensation for injuries received during Martial Law. For me, any amount of money is an insult to these people. But if it helps, then it helps.”

His co-organizer Bullo thought otherwise. “I believe it’s a way for the government to recognize the atrocities and give [the issue] closure, not through monetary transfer but through acknowledgment and recognition.”

“When we start recognition here, as a landmark case, we can further the movements into finding more accounts, holding past cronies and the AFP accountable, and exposing human rights violations and the whereabouts, status, or the final ordeals or deaths of the disappeared,” Bullo said.

As for the forthcoming elections, Bullo, Giron and Quimpo separately reminded the voters to be wary of voting for some candidates, especially with the prevalence of the Marcoses’ names.

“Bongbong’s always been around, and Imelda’s always been around. I don’t really see any big change, but the danger’s always been there—being laid back, being quiet and not remembering,” said Giron.

This danger seems to lie chiefly with the younger voting base who might be less informed of the matter.

Quimpo suggested that voters make a background check of candidates they plan to vote for by researching via the Internet, for example.

Giron further said that Ateneans should tend to the responsibility of educating themselves before voting.

“I think there are [fewer] obstacles for Ateneans… It’s very basic, and it’s bordering on immoral and unethical for someone with so much resources [that would allow for informed choices] to not use it and know about these things,” he said.