Pols, martial law survivors decry ‘climate of fear’ under Duterte

Former president Benigno S. Aquino III attends the 31st anniversary of Edsa People Power revolution held at the People Power Monument.
INQUIRER PHOTO

Survivors of martial law, millennials and militants gathered at the People Power monument in Quezon City to commemorate the 31st anniversary of the Edsa People Power Revolution on Saturday.

Also present were former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, Senators Franklin Drilon, Francis Pangilinan, Bam Aquino and Risa Hontiveros.

More than 50 groups from different sectors joined the “Power of We” rally to not only commemorate the bloodless revolt but also to stand against the
“climate of fear” brought by the unabated killings under President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration.

Wilson Fortaleza, head of Partido Manggagawa, said the spate of killings, the proposed reimposition of the death penalty and the moves to lower the age of criminal liability only show the possible return of dictatorship, saying that a “second Marcos” is in our midst.

In 1986, thousands of Filipinos marched to Edsa in a bloodless revolution which toppled the two-decade regime of former President Ferdinand Marcos.

Duterte, who has shown affinity for the Marcos family, has been criticized for his decision to allow the burial of the late dictator at the Libingan ng mga Bayani last year. He also ordered a low-key commemoration of the uprising’s 31st anniversary, a move which the Palace said does not diminish the revolt’s spirit.

Duterte has repeatedly called on the Filipinos to move on from the pain of martial law. His contradicting rhetoric on declaring martial law has also alarmed sectors.