‘SNEAKY’ BURIAL

LIE-IN. About 50 students of the University of the Philippines (UP) Cebu gather for a lie-in at the road just outside of the main gate of the university, located in Barangay Lahug, Cebu City, to protest the surprise burial, with military honors, of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani at noon yesterday, Nov. 18, 2016.

To his last moment above the ground, the deposed strongman settled his affairs in secrecy.

Behind shut gates and away from public view, Ferdinand Marcos was buried with military honors at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) at high noon Friday, leaving a nation shocked at his “sneaky” interment.

The burial of the late dictator at the LNMB caught many by surprise, sending a firestorm of protests from anti-Marcos forces across the country, including Cebu.

President Rodrigo Duterte and the Marcos family enjoined the public to accept the late strongman’s burial at the LNMB as part of the country’s healing process.

But protests were mounted soon after news broke out that Marcos, in a private ceremony at the cemetery in Taguig City, was given military honors with a 21-gun salute when he was laid to rest, more than 27 years after his death in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Government leaders — starting from Vice President Leni Robredo to Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, expressed dismay over the burial, which Osmeña, like many others, described as “sneaky.”

“This is nothing new to the Marcoses — they who had hidden wealth, hidden human rights abuses, and now, a hidden burial — with complete disrespect for the rule of law,” said Robredo in a statement yesterday.

The media and the public were barred from entering the LNMB as rites went on at the hallowed grounds, which was held despite pending reconsideration pleas at the High Court against his burial.

A handful of Marcos supporters carrying Philippine flaglets rejoiced as they heard the sound of a 21-gun salute from inside the cemetery, signaling that the interment was already underway.

Police and navy officers lined streets leading to the heroes’ cemetery and fortified the gate, though it was apparent there was no cause for concern.

Only a lone protester, Nicole Aliasas, 22, managed to get close.

In the rush of the rites, no group, not those for long protesting the injustices of Marcos’ martial rule and his unsettled sins, were able to muster mobilizations.

Inside the heroes’ cemetery, former first lady and now Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Marcos was in tears as her husband was laid to rest, surrounded by family members that included their children, Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos, former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Irene Marcos-Araneta.

The former first lady wore a black Filipiniana dress and her daughters were in white, while her son donned a Barong Tagalog.

The clandestine rites were met with condemnation from human rights groups and martial law victims.

By dusk, various demonstrations were being held in Metro Manila and other parts of the country to protest the hero’s burial for the late dictator (see stories on page 2).

Mayor Osmeña said he was not surprised that Marcos was buried at the LNMB in a seemingly sneaky manner, without prior announcement, and with the public and media being barred entry by riot policemen. The mayor said that the Marcos’ kin and supporters chose to do things stealthily, probably to avoid further embarrassment.

“Well, maybe that was the right thing to do because if they announced, I think people will mobilize to stop it. And they would suffer the embarrassment that they deserve. They just did a 1, 2, 3 quick, bury. That’s it, finished,” he told reporters yesterday.

When news of the burial rites for Marcos broke only about an hour before 12 noon, anti-Marcos groups scampered to try and prevent or at least protest the scheduled interment.

But they were too late because the gates of the LNMB were already shut and guarded by policemen, preventing anyone from going inside, save for some Marcos supporters.

Although Osmeña has been vocal in his distaste over the Supreme Court’s decision to allow the burial of Marcos in the LNMB, he admitted that he could not question the legalities by which the High Court based its decision.

But personally, he said he remained offended by the decision, saying that it seems to show that the country’s law and legal system is glorifying a dictator.

“It’s a personal thing with me also. My father (the late Senator Sergio Osmeña Jr.) got bombed in Plaza Miranda. And Marcos, to me, is clearly responsible for that. How do you think I feel about it?” Osmeña said.

Vice President Robredo expressed grave disappointment over the surprise Marcos burial, calling the former President a “thief, murderer and dictator” who does not deserve a place in the heroes’ cemetery.

“Like a thief in the night, the Marcos family deliberately hid the information of burying former President Marcos today from the Filipino people,” Robredo said in a statement sent to the media on Friday.

“They obviously flouted the law where the decision does not become final and executory until 15 days or the resolution of the (motion for reconsideration),” she said.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) confirmed the burial of Marcos at the heroes’ cemetery in Taguig City barely an hour before the ceremony, which was slated for 12 noon as part of military tradition. The Vice President also found it disturbing that the Marcos family had secret coordination with the AFP and the PNP for the logistical arrangement and deployment of personnel for the burial.

“We are disturbed that this happened in coordination with AFP and PNP demonstrating further that the judicial process has been thoroughly disregarded,” she said.

“Once again, we strongly condemn the burial of the former dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani. As stated in several decisions from the Supreme Court, Ferdinand Marcos was a thief, a murderer and a dictator,” she said.

“He is no hero. If he were, obviously his family would not have to hide his burial like a shameful criminal deed,” Robredo added.

President Duterte, speaking in Peru on Friday, justified his decision to allow Marcos to be buried as a hero by virtue of the latter being a president for so long and a soldier.

“Me, I am just being legalistic about it. President Marcos was a president for so long, and he was a soldier. That’s about it,” he told Radio-TV Malacañang shortly after arriving in the Peruvian capital of Lima for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit.

Sounding unaffected by the criticism back home, Mr. Duterte said he did it in part to allow the healing of the nation, particularly the Ilocano people.

“You know … we have a divided nation, though not that widespread. You can be very sure all the Ilocano-speaking people are hurt. They are dismayed. It’s been there floating like flotsam,” the President said.

He said he was making no moral judgments on Marcos’ record as a leader.

“Whether or not he performed worse or better, there’s no study, no movie about it, just the challenges and allegations of the other side,” Mr. Duterte said.

The President also left a message for those who were “hurt or injured” during the martial law years: “For those detained so long and suffering, we have this option to file the case against the late president Marcos.”

“You know the sins cannot visit the children and liability is always personal. That’s a principle of law which must always be followed,” he said.

Mr. Duterte suggested that the martial law victims “stretch” their understanding for what happened during the Marcos regime.