MANILA, Philippines — Responding to photos of school material going viral online, the Department of Education denied Tuesday that its modules were revising the history of the Martial Law regime of the late former president Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
In a statement, Vice President Sara Duterte, concurrently education secretary hit back against claims of historical revisionism, saying they "lack context and can be distorted according to the narrative of those who criticize DepEd and spread lies about rebranding and historical revisionism."
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This comes after a social media post from a student in Marinduque shows a DepEd-issued module showing the term "New Society" to refer to the historical period from 1972 to 1980 instead of Martial Law. Duterte in her statement Tuesday argued that the post focused on only one line.
"The terms New Society/Bagong Lipunan and Martial Law are both historical facts. It is a historical fact that New Society refers to the program launched by Former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. during his administration. And it is another historical fact that Martial Law refers to the 14-year rule of the former president," Duterte said in Filipino.
"Both terms have been used in DepEd textbooks since 2000 — within their proper context. DepEd is not in the business of erasing these facts and replacing them with something else."
She added that the Department of Education was "busy with programs aimed at raising the quality of basic education in the Philippines [and] has no time for the historical revisionism that some anti-Marcos groups insist."
The Alliance of Concerned Teachers also noted earlier that the senior high school 21st Century Literary called the “Geographic, Linguistic, and Ethnic Dimensions of Philippine Literary History from Pre-Colonical to the Contemporary” had factual errors and “overall problematic periodization.”
Earlier this year, “panic buying” of books and other materials related to the Martial Law period spurred fear of historical revisionism under another Marcos presidency.
READ: ‘Protect the truth’: A Marcos return in Philippines triggers fear for history
The Marcoses have not been shy about their intention to rehabilitate the family name. President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in his inaugural address noted that educational materials “must be retaught.”
At the canvassing of the votes in late May, Sen. Imee Marcos was quoted as saying: "What’s most important to us is of course, our name, the family name that has become so controversial— the legacy of my father is what we hope will be clarified at last."
"Like millions of our fellow Filipinos, I know the importance of Martial Law and the EDSA Revolution in our history as a country," Duterte also said Tuesday. "As education secretary, it is not in my mandate to destroy the integrity of our history."
Marcos Sr.’s two-decade 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.