On February 25, 1986, millions of Philippines marched against Ferdinand Marcos Sr’s 20-year dictatorship, culminating in the historic People Power Revolution. However, 37 years later, Filipinos continue to fight for democracy as Ferdinand Marcos Jr, or “Bongbong” Marcos, has become president and Juan Ponce Enrile, a key advisor to the new leader, was once on the side of the People’s Power revolt. Marcos Jr has recast his father’s reign as a golden age for peace and infrastructure, dismissing the record of human rights abuses and corruption. Many Filipinos are dismayed by the Marcos family’s return to power, with one political prisoner, Judy Taguiwalo, feeling angry at the injustice of it all.
Ms. Taguiwalo was made to sit on a block of ice until she was numb and had bullets stuck between her fingers while her hands were squeezed. She gave birth in prison, and mother and child were released only after Marcos Sr was exiled to Hawaii and Corazon Aquino was sworn in as president. The Marcoses have re-established themselves with Marcos Jr winning the presidency in May 2022 by the highest margin in the country’s history. Millions are still poor while billionaires are getting richer, and this disillusionment is the major reason for the Marcos family’s return.
Mr. Enrile’s political survival is a case in point. He was retained as defence chief by Mrs Aquino, giving him a springboard to get elected to parliament for decades. He held on to power until 2019, despite being implicated in failed uprisings under two presidents, including Mrs Aquino. Even now, he serves as Marcos Jr’s chief political adviser, with the hatchet from the People Power revolt long buried. He has also outlived nearly all of the revolution’s main characters.
For Filipino millennials and Generation Z, Mr. Enrile is the politician who was born before Mickey Mouse and sliced bread. However, for those who were kidnapped, tortured and raped by state forces during the Marcos years, Mr. Enrile remains the martial law administrator and Marcos Sr’s powerful right-hand man. He has denied all allegations of human rights abuses by the state, saying Marcos Sr’s government “never adopted a policy of killing people with impunity.”
Activists say the fight to make sure young Filipinos never forget what happened under Marcos Sr will likely be a long one – and winning it will take more than protests on the streets. Ms. Taguiwalo and others have been collecting clippings from the “mosquito press” that was critical of Marcos Sr at the time, preserving them in digital format for the younger generation to post and share on social media.
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