Rallies mark Bonifacio Day in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - While yesterday's mass actions in Cebu in line with the Bonifacio Day celebrations were peaceful, they were not exclusive to the moves protesting the burial of former strongman Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

Supporters of President Rodrigo Duterte arrived at the Plaza Independencia around 11 a.m., midway into the anti-Marcos protest. With the two groups just 50 meters away from each other, chants of "Marcos, tuta, diktador!" and "Duterte, Duterte!" clashed at the plaza.

Police estimate the anti-Marcos crowd at 1,000, much bigger than the crowd during the "Black Friday Protest." Organizers of the pro-Duterte group said 1,200 joined their caravan.

The anti-Marcos protest yesterday was organized by Cebu Citizens Assembly, a group of political and apolitical non-government organizations. Mostly affiliated with left leading Akbayan, they are the same groups that campaigned in Cebu against the vice presidential bid of former Senator Bongbong Marcos.

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña who joined the protest said he never believed that the Philippines is the most corrupt country in the world until he learned about what the Marcoses did.

 "But now I am telling you, the Philippines is the most corrupt country in the world because of Marcos… kamo mga kabataan would have to be the ones to realize that what is happening in the past is still happening today. Walay kaugmaon ni kung corruption is all over the place," the mayor said.

"What Marcos did to our country has created unrepairable damage. They say when you plunder the country, that's one thing, but he left a culture of corruption," Osmeña added.

Organizers said the demonstrations and the event is to remind the public that Marcos is not a hero and that "tyranny should never happen in the country again."

 Before convening at the plaza, the participants kicked the activity with protests in the streets.

"Move on"

The pro-Duterte group also hit the streets on board vehicles with the President's photo and a tarpaulin with the words "Anti Senator Leila De Lima" plastered on vehicles before gathering at the plaza. There, they called on the other group to "move on" and stop their rallies.

"We need to move forward. We cannot hold ourselves back because of one family (Marcoses)," said Dr. Rowena Burden, lead convenor of Cebu for Duterte

She said even members of their group have their own views on the burial issue but they want to respect the decision of the Supreme Court.

Another leader of the group, Atty. Ervin Estandarte of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Laban, himself does not believe that Marcos is a hero. 

Bonifacio

As yesterday's protests coincided with Bonifacio Day, anti-Marcos protesters also paid tribute to the father of Katipunan.

"Andres Bonifacio was a hero and Ferdinand Marcos was not and never will be," Akbayan partylist Representative Tomisito Villarin said.

Villarin talked about Bonifacio's great patriotism taken from "the power drawn from the people who believed as he did and fought as he did."

He also reminded the people of the other revolution Filipinos faced: the People Power.

"Thirty years ago, daghan sa ato ang milihok, dili lang sa Manila, para patalsikin, para pahawaon sa puwesto, ang usa ka diktador nga kung asa he usurped power, he amassed wealth, he plundered the nation, he tortured and put into prison 76,000 Filipinos. And 30 years ago, we said never again to Martial Law," Villarin said.

He also pointed out the importance of building "a strong foundation of principles for our future generations" so that the truth about the history of the Philippines can be passed on and historical revisionism will be fought.

"Kining paglubong sa usa ka diktador, plunderer, ug ingon nato'g mass murder sa Libingan ng mga Bayani, usa ni ka insulto, usa ni ka dakong pagdagok sa atong kasaysayan bilang mga Pilipino," he said.

Victims, too

According to Osmeña, Filipinos those who were born after the Marcos era are also victims of Martial Law because of the "culture of corruption" it left behind.

Citing an example of the atrocities during the regime, Osmeña shared the experience of the brother of Sally Alvarez in the hands of the military.

The military "cut his ears, plucked out his eyes, eventually they cut his tongue" just so he could lead them to Alvarez who was hiding in the United States.

"Now they say 'the past will be forgotten'. I'm sorry, Mr. President. Maybe most people have forgotten, I have not forgotten, and I will not forgive. There's no 50/50 here. There's no win-win situation. The people must know the truth," Osmeña said. — with Vania Mae Lim and Rexy Quennie A. Engle (FREEMAN)