Martial Law education pushed to keep memory of abuses alive
MANILA, Philippines — There is a need to make lessons on the regime of the late Ferdinand Marcos part of the curriculum at all levels of schooling to keep people from forgetting the abuses of the Martial Law era, convenors of opposition coalition 1Sambayan said on the eve of the anniversary of the People Power Revolution that toppled the dictatorship.
“That should be made part of the curriculum in grade school, high school and college because that’s part of our history, a very important part of our history,” former Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio told a news briefing.
But Fr. Albert Alejo pointed out that there were openings for the country to introduce Martial Law education, especially during the presidency of Cory Aquino, who led a revolutionary government in the wake of Marcos fleeing for the US, and his son, Benigno Aquino III.
“Dapat noong panahon na iyon, ‘di sana nag-sponsor ng mga historians, ng mga textbook writers. May pagkukulang,” Alejo said, adding that the Catholic Church, which played an instrumental role in the downfall of the Marcos regime, also fell short of educating the people on Martial Law.
(During those times, they should have sponsored historians and textbook writers. There were shortcomings.)
For economist JC Punongbayan, who is not a convenor of 1Sambayan but was a guest on the panel, there is a need to reintroduce Philippine history in high school as younger students may not fully grasp the context of Martial Law.
Punongbayan added that with disinformation running rampant on social media, younger Filipinos may be exposed to false narratives surrounding the dictatorship.
There have been a handful of proposals in Congress to introduce Martial Law education in schools, but they have so far yet to hurdle the legislative mill.
One such measure is a bill filed in 2019 by members of the progressive Makabayan bloc that seeks to mandate the study of human rights in all levels of schooling.
“There is a pressing and serious need for the government to educate its citizens, especially the youth, on their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights,” the lawmakers said.
They added, “The fact that a number of young people today want another Martial Law … means that human rights as a fundamental societal principle is not inculcated in the youth as much.”
The Marcos family has refused to apologize or even acknowledge the atrocities and mass looting of government coffers during their patriarch’s over two-decade rule.
Despite this, a whopping 60% of Filipinos said they would vote for Marcos’ son and namesake, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., according to a recent survey by private pollster Pulse Asia.
Marcos Sr.’s rule saw thousands imprisoned, tortured, killed and disappeared — a fact that was recognized by a Hawaiit court and affirmed by the United States 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in 1995 and the Supreme Court in 2003.
Republic Act No. 10368 or the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act also recognizes that there “were victims of summary execution, torture, enforced or involuntary disappearance and other gross human rights violations” under the Marcos regime.
The same law established the Human Rights Victims Claims Board, which has listed 11,103 people who were victims of human rights violations under Marcos’ rule who would receive around P180,000 to P1.7 million in compensation.
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