Remperas, Clara Therese A.

4Bio7

Batas Militar

Martial law in the Philippines (Tagalog: Batas Militar sa Pilipinas) refers to the period of Philippine history
wherein Philippine Presidents and Heads of state declared a proclamation to control troublesome areas
under the rule of the Military, and it is usually given when threatened by popular demonstrations, or to
crack down on the opposition. Martial law can also be declared in cases of major natural disasters,
however most countries use a different legal construct like "state of emergency".

In 1972, the Philippines was officially declared to be under martial law by its then president,

Ferdinand Marcos. The establishment of this new law turned their democratic political system into a
totalitarian system, functioning similarly to the system used by “The Party” in George Orwell’s
novel, 1984. Both governments’ propagandic efforts had allowed them to remain in power through the

use of physical force, psychological manipulation of aphorisms, and media restraints.

Marcos had issued Proclamation 1081 to prevent a social breakdown and collapse of the
economy, as well as gain control over the media ("Marcos Administration"). He instituted martial law and

“justified [it] as a necessary corrective to the lawlessness permeating the nation” (Espiritu). Though the
Party never justified their actions or doctrines, they still had complete control over their people. In both
situations, the government had complete authority over their people as a result of their propaganda efforts.

They both constantly surveilled everything to watch for any signs of disloyalty. Curfews were so heavily
enforced in the Philippines that anyone caught loitering would be thrown into prison, similar to how a
midnight stroll was deemed “suspicious” and even a simple facial twitch could lead to an arrest in 1984.

When the Philippine nation demanded a Kalayaan,

What started the martial law? It all started from bombing in Plaza Miranda. The 1971 Plaza Miranda bombing
occurred during a political campaign rally of the Liberal Party at Plaza Miranda in the district of Quiapo,
Manila on August 21, 1971. It caused nine deaths and injured 95 others. The injured Party’s campaign rally
was held to proclaim the candidacies of eight Senatorial bets as well as the candidate for the Mayoralty race in
Manila. As a crowd of about 4,000 gathered to hear speeches. Two hand grenades were reportedly tossed on
stage.

Among those killed instantly were a 5 year old child and The Manila Times photographer Ben Roxas. Almost
everyone on stage was injured, including incumbent Senator Jovito Salonga (Liberal Party), President Gerardo
Roxas and Sergio Osmena, Jr. , (son of former President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, Sergio
Osmena). The election was cancelled because of the bombing in plaza Miranda. Which made President
Ferdinand Marcos to declare Martial Law and continue to rule Philippines. The Martial Law By definition,
Martial Law is the temporary superimposition of military government over civil government.

This military-run government is put into place in the event of war or serious national emergencies. During such
times, the military and its accompanying superiors take over the executive, legislative and judicial functions
normally delegated to the civil government by virtue of its constitution. As a consequence, the writhabeas
corpus, or the right of an individual in custody to be brought to court to determine whether such incarceration
or imprisonment is lawful, may be suspended indefinitely. This suspension of individual rights denies the
person due process of law. My Reflection:

When we speak of Martial Law, the first thing that comes to our mind is the former President who installed it,
Ferdinand Edralin Marcos. In truth, we blame this person for the failure that was martial law. Still, there are
some who stand steadfast in defending martial law as the best thing that ever happened to the country. It’s been
41 years since former president and dictator Ferdinand Marcos signed Proclamation No. 1081, placing the
entire Philippines under Martial Law. According to my reading and understanding, he did it to save the
Republic and to create what he called a “New Society.

In other words, Martial Law is the ultimate solution to curves growing problems in criminality. For me,
Martial Law wasn’t the best thing in the world that happened to the Philippines. Martial Law during the time
of Marcos wasn’t declared to restore peace and order. Nor was it declared to do good for the country. Money
and power is the only thing that can be heard. Nobody can be respected! Marcos used several events to justify
Martial Law. I also disagree that Martial Law was ultimate solution to curve growing problems on criminality.
There is criminality due to poverty.

And it just seems that crimes could be minimized if not eradicated or being eliminated during Martial Law
because there is no press freedom, no due process, and etc. It may not solved poverty but yes, it does
“minimized” criminality. The only problem of having Martial Law was the people in authority are the ones
abuse their power to implement the rules of law. Whether we have or we don’t have Martial Law, the
corruptions will remains and the poverty will keep growing because the population keeps booming. Some
people say that Martial Law was imposed for the good of the Marcoses and their cronies, just to keep them in
wealth.

Cronies started to get richer and richer. What the cronies want, the cronies get. Imagine what more the case of
what Imelda wants, Imelda gets. And the military started it’s countless cases of human rights abuses, military
cruelty and oppression was at its finest hours. Martial Law that time was like this, anybody could be picked up
at anytime for any reason by the military or the police. If you protested against the government, you were
labeled as “communist” and you were summarily arrested. People that time was afraid to speak out.
There are lots of people who suffered human rights violations that saw thousands of life damaged, destroyed,
or lost. Some of them were the victims of salvaging. (Filipinos who just disappeared from the face of the
earth). With Martial Law, those hardheaded people that doesn’t want to follow the rules of law will hide
themselves and only those in the military has a power to do what ever they want. Coming up with the idea of
every Filipinos who will join the military in order for them to have a safety net incase there well be war among
them. It seems so funny, but that’s the reality.

For me, the advantages of Martial Law during Marcos time is the people were disciplined when he declared
Martial, less car accidents at night because of the curfew, there was law and order during the martial law,
Disadvantages, is the death of democracy. Marcos used several events to justify Martial Law. The declaration
had made people be mute for a moment. Suspended the civil rights and imposed military authority in the
country. There is no freedom of the press. The rights of the people to speak and share their opinion in that
current situation was totally denied and deprived.

Stronger military power, which cause harm to the civilians. Tens of thousands were arrested and imprisoned
without court charges, thousands were tortured and hundreds summarily executed. What with everybody
scared that complaining to the courts would not do anything to help. People were dying and justice is nowhere
to be found. disappear. Disregarded all rights of the people. Life itself has no value during the Martial Law,
people started to be missing, missing people turning up dead. Institutions and businesses that are owned by
oppositions are confiscated, no matter how many generations of the same families have owned them.

But the spirit of justice had been awakened in the Filipino people once more. Like their forefathers or ancestors
before them who rallied against the tyranny of the Spanish rulers, the people united in a common cause. Once
again, the Filipino people united against insurmountable odds to overthrow the dictator Marcos. The revolution
had been realized. The power of the Filipinos is not in physical form, it is a binding spirit which unites them
for a common cause. My generalization, as the time goes by, Martial Law remains a permanent scar in our
collective consciousness as a people.

Martial Law? It will never do good for this country. I say it because the Philippines cannot have a leader
without selfish people around with selfish interest at the back of their minds . Yes, we can probably say that
the leader may have good intentions, but the people around him, his relatives, his friends, his cronies may have
other interests in mind. If martial law is declared right now, I do not believe the country can do anything to
prevent it, much less oppose it! But i am sure Filipinos will not live everyday living a life run by a dictator.
What did Marcos do to help in the development of the country?
Absolutely nothing. He committed grave human rights violations and amassed ill-gotten wealth
particularly during the dark years of Martial Law. To say that he helped develop the country is
like saying that the edifices built like the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and bridges like
the San Juanico Bridge in Leyte could make up for the oppression and repression that
happened.

What was it like during Marcos’ time?

I was four years old when Martial Law was declared in 1972 and was graduating from high
school when EDSA 1 happened in 1986. I remember that during my youth, there was a
semblance of normalcy as our minds were conditioned that censorship was necessary and that
any negative news about the Marcos regime was false. It was during my high school days,
particularly when Ninoy Aquino was assassinated in August 1983 that I realized the oppression
that was happening.

If you were on the shoes of His Excellency Benigno Aquino III, what would you do to
resolve the the issue of the burial of Marcos at Libingan ng mga Bayani?
If I were President, I would not allow his burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Doing so would
be ignoring the repression that happened during Martial Law.

What would be the greatest achievement Marcos accomplished during his tenure?
His greatest “achievement” was uniting a broad number of people against the dictatorship. At
that time, the running joke was that Marcos was chiefly responsible for increasing the number
of rebels as a result of the repression that was happening then.

In your experience, was the declaration of Martial Law necessary?

It was not necessary and Marcos only created an illusion that the republic was threatened by
the alleged communist insurgency. It was during Martial Law that the conjugal dictatorship and
Marcos cronies amassed wealth.

What was the state of the Philippine economy during his time?
There was, of course, an illusion of growth and the crony press focused on the “good news”
then, particularly the so-called benefits of Martial Law. But it cannot be denied that there was
widespread poverty then, particularly in the countryside. This explains why the insurgency
became stronger outside the cities as the economic deprivation was felt more there.

It has been said that problems arose in the Marcos administration when Imelda Marcos
intervened. How true is this statement? What can you say about it?
Her intervention was expected because what existed then was a “conjugal dictatorship.” Both
of them were responsible for what happened. There is no basis exonerating Ferdinand Marcos
and blaming the wife for the problems of the administration then.
Apart from the Martial Law, what other factors marred Marcos in the eyes of the Filipino
people?
Martial Law was the main factor. Prior to its declaration in 1972, of course the ambition of
Marcos to perpetuate himself in power was already apparent. He could be driven mainly by the
economic benefits of being in power.

My thesis statement for my research paper: Ferdinand Marcos was a decorated war hero
and an accomplished president so President Aquino should approve his burial at the
Heroes’ Cemetery. The question is what do you think of my recommendation?
His being a war hero is beside the point. His being an “accomplished” President is subject to
debate. In the final analysis, he does not deserve to be given state honors as a result of what he
did. He is a dictator and the chief architect of the regime that resulted in loss of lives and
livelihood of many Filipinos. How can he be “honored” for that?
In 1972 Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law with Proclamation 1081. He did it, he said, to save the
Republic and to create what he called a "New Society." A whole generation of Filipinos now exists which
only has the faintest recollection -- if at all -- of the Marcos dictatorship. Kids, this is what you missed.
Perhaps it's what you should pass on when you have kids of your own.

The lies. The biggest lie -- the mother lie -- was that Martial Law was imposed for the good of the people.
It was not. It was imposed for the good of the Marcoses and their cronies, to keep them in wealth and
unassailable power forever and ever amen. Marcos was a congenital liar: he lied about the state of
emergency. He lied about his ill-gotten wealth ("what ill-gotten wealth?", he would ask amusedly."Tell
you what, if you can find it we'll split it". Shows how reliable his word was). He lied about his war
medals (almost all of them were fake), he lied about his father's wartime heroics (it turned out Marcos Sr
was a collaborator executed by the guerrillas), he lied about his health. He lied about holding free
elections and dismantling Martial Law. He lied and lied and lied. This was the man Joseph Estrada
wanted to give a hero's burial.
The fear. Anybody could be picked up at anytime for any reason by the military or the police. You could
wind up a detainee, or you could just vanish, a "salvage" victim. If you protested against the government,
you were labeled a "subversive" or a "communist" or both and you were summarily arrested. People the
government didn't like were tailed by security elements, their telephones tapped. A student who spoke up
to Imee Marcos was murdered. No two words were more invoked and abused for the purposes of
oppression than "national security." People were afraid to speak out. Marcos logic being what it was, the
silence meant the people were happy.
The injustice. Only Marcos and his cronies, who plundered the economy, were protected by the law.
Nobody else was. Arbitrary arrest, detention, salvaging and torture were the standard. The Defense
Minister -- a man named Juan Ponce Enrile -- said in 1982: "We presume that priests and nuns charged
with subversive activities are guilty until the courts decide whether they are guilty or not." On one
occasion the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, someone named Enrique Fernando, servilely held an
umbrella over Imelda Marcos' head.
The censorship. It was only when rebel soldiers finally seized a TV station in the EDSA uprising that
people saw in their sets just how big the crowds were. Up until then the media were strictly controlled.
Journalists who wrote against the regime -- most of them were women -- were routinely "invited" for
questioning by the military. There was no transparency whatever. There were only three national
broadsheets, the Times Journal, the Daily Express and the Bulletin Today, all of them offering the same
pro-administration pap. The chief Marcos mouthpiece was a columnist named Teodoro Valencia. He died
in 1986 and is now considered the "dean" of Philippine journalism. In 1983, when Ninoy Aquino was
buried, at least one million people accompanied the funeral cortege as it wound its way through Manila.
The next day, the Bulletin scarcely mentioned the story, instead playing up a story about a man struck and
killed by lightning at the Luneta Park.(Recently, Joseph Estrada extolled the Bulletin as his idea of a good
newspaper).
The poverty. Poverty increased from 24% in 1974 to 40% in 1980 and why not? Imelda Marcos was
using the Philippine National Bank as her private piggy bank. One of her ideas of dealing with the poor
was to put up whitewashed walls around the squatter areas in Manila. The walls are still there.
The corruption. There were suspicions about the Marcoses dipping into the public till. After EDSA,
dazed investigators realized that the truth far outstripped the suspicions. The Marcoses had been screwing
the public even before Martial Law. As early as 1968 Ferdinand and Imelda had already salted away more
than $900,000 in Zurich accounts under the names "William Saunders" and "Jane Ryan." It was the initial
deposit in what would turn out to be a mountain of loot. After having tracked down Marcos accounts and
properties all over the world, investigators still aren't sure that they've found all the ill-gotten wealth.
The US support for the regime. The US loved their bases in the Philippines and put up with Marcos as
long as they could. When George Bush, who was US vice-president then, visited Manila for a sham
inauguration of Marcos, he proposed a toast to the dictator, saying "we love your adherence to democratic
principles and to the democratic process."
Imelda Marcos speeches. They were terrible and they dragged on interminably. Among the things she
said publicly: The Philippines is the center of the world, because that's the way it looks in a map. There's
a cosmic hole in the Universe which shines radiation in the Philippines which Filipinos can tap to deflect
intercontinental ballistic missiles. Her audience would applaud frantically. Cowards cheering a loony.
The arrogance of those in power. It was called a "smiling dictatorship" but the only one who was
smiling was the dictator. Actually, his friends and family were also happy. When his cronies got into
business trouble they were bailed out with taxpayers' money. No investigations into cartels and
monopolies were allowed. Marcos "lifted" Martial Law in 1981 but continued to rule by decree. Later it
was discovered he had signed dozens and dozens of secret decrees which he intended to flash at the
appropriate occasions. During the 1986 snap election when an opposition official said that there had been
cheating an election commissioner -- his name was Jaime Opinion -- sneered at him on TV and snapped,
"that's a lie!" repeatedly. After EDSA Opinion went into hiding. When EDSA was in full swing, a rebel
helicopter attacked the Palace with rockets. Marcos went on air and said "my family cowers in the
Palace." He didn't get any outpouring of sympathy.

The Martial Law years still bring a lot of painful memories to many Filipinos. While it is true that
Marcos did a lot of good things for the country, the list of human rights violations and crimes is just
as long. For many, this is what overshadows his achievements.

Reflection:

Realized how blessed I am, that I am free to do what I want, because of heroes who sacrificed their lives
for that

Learnedthe importance of freedom and sacrifice

What the Youth Says
The questions we asked:
*What did your parents or elder relatives tell you about Martial Law?
*Do you think putting the country under Martial Law will be beneficial for everyone?
Virg Artajo Jr., 20 (Online Survey)
“They told me that during the Martial Law, the country was so rich. Many infrastructures were made
and people were disciplined.
Putting a country under Martial Law is done if a threat has been bothering the country. Thus, it’s the
defense mechanism of the country to lessen or prevent future devastation that can cause the fall of
the nation. However, if people with evil desires will use Martial Law for personal enrichment, that’s
the time it is not right. I could say that Martial Law has been beneficial to our country, but it took so
much time and already oppressed the rights of the Filipinos.”
Danica Tacbas, 20 (man-on-the-street interview)
“Martial Law has its advantages and disadvantages. According to my mother, it has advantages to
the poor and has disadvantages to rich people.
Not one government type will be beneficial for everyone; not even democracy, because in a diverse
country like the Philippines, different communities breed different kinds of people. Different people
work and cooperate best with different government types. Some people need freedom to execute
their ideas, while some need rigid discipline to keep them on track.”
Mary Nyka dela Cruz, 17 (Online Survey)
“According to what I heard from my elder relatives and from reliable sources, Martial Law is a law
administered by military forces. It is invoked by the Government when the civilian law enforcement
agencies are unable to control public order and safety. Under the Marcos Administration, Martial
Law was declared throughout the country to stop the raging riots, violence, and unrighteous
manners. In fact, Martial has a good and bad outcome. Good in such a way that the Filipinos were
very much disciplined and there were less crime cases in our country. Bad in such a way that fear
reigned in the heart of every Filipino. Filipinos felt that they were like birds in a cage. During the time
of Martial Law, military forces showed abusive acts in ruling the public. That’s why Filipinos felt that
eagerness to acquire freedom.
Today, we have democracy but it is no longer healthy for our country. Filipinos have become very
dependent to the government. For me, it would be beneficial to bring back the Martial Law to have
order in society. I just hope that the military forces have a better approach towards the public without
abusing the power vested on them.”
Rocky Ted Almario, 21 (Office Interview)
“People went missing from time-to-time and were assumed to have been caught by the military
government. Military had total control over the public.”
It is effective and has maintained peace and order to the country way back 1970s. But, under the
rule of a tyrant, it could be very dangerous. Still, I agree that it could be beneficial for everyone.
Marcos did an outstanding job during the time. He just abused the power, which led to issues of
corruption.”
Karl Niko Cagasan, 18 (Online Survey)
“My parents told me that it was not good during the Martial law years. It is not also favorable for a
Christian country.”
Regardless of what my parents told me, I still believe that it is beneficial to bring Martial Law
whenever necessary. This is to bring discipline and order in the society. I think Martial law would
give us less crime.”
Raymond Magpulong, 22 (Office interview)
“Military soldiers were everywhere. All civilian actions were limited caused by restrictions and fear.
They felt no freedom that time.”
I agree that it would be beneficial for everyone to have Martial Law today. I believe that we have too
much freedom now. More people continue to abuse the democracy we have. I am suggesting
having revisions in the Martial Law mechanisms that it will still aim for peace and order without
abuse of power. As I observe the society, there are existing problems that Martial Law can really
help to solve.”
Decone Quinto, 20 (Interview on the street)
“Martial law is mandated by the late president Ferdinand Marcos. They said the Philippines was
better that time. They compare it with the current state of our country now. But, they also stated the
disadvantage, which is the abusive soldiers and the lack of freedom.
I don’t think it’s a good idea to have Martial law again because the civil rights and the freedom of the
people will be limited, thus people cannot express their thoughts about an issue. Thus, leading to
another revolution and there might be another war again since most of the people here in the
Philippines are against that law.”
Consensus (for the younger generation): Martial Law can help restore peace.
What Those Who Lived Through the Martial Law Years Have to Say

Another screenshot from “Dekada ’70”

Our questions:
*What can you recall about Martial Law?
*Do you think Martial Law would be beneficial to our country today? Why?
Sir Charles Abing, Musician and Professor
“My family lived in a barrio; not remote, but not easily accessible. All I could remember was that the
adults seemed scared to go out, and we had to be home by 6pm (church bell rings). If I remember it
right, they mentioned something like wearing a red cloth on their arm.”
Note: It was the activists who wore something red; a bandana, every time they marched on the
streets. Click this link to get the details.
Li Shao (Facebook user who willingly contributed when we sent out the questions online)
“After 5pm, we had to show our cedula to confirm who we were. No kids allowed in Lanao after 5pm.
If you will disregard the time, it’s either you will end up with the military police or the PNP barracks,
tortured.”
“They took a lot of properties from farmers, especially the lumad.”
“There were two sets of military: the killers and the killers. Period. I hope the young ones and the
older generation alike who are ignorant of the said Martial Law will find time to really research before
giving their opinion about it.”
“The military was the rule of law. They could do anything they wanted. All they had to do was
mention that it is Martial Law.”
Shaun O. Sheng
“I was very young when Martial Law was still in effect. So, my knowledge about it came from what
my parents and relatives told me – that the Marcoses and the government were bad and not just.
Yes, in a way, Martial Law will be beneficial to our country; but it should only be enforced if certain
events or conditions occur. Martial Law is rightfully declared to bring order to a place where there is
general chaos and disorder caused by people who do uncivilized acts. One example of proper
enforcement of Martial Law is done to a place hit by natural calamities in order to prevent people
from looting and stealing devastated establishments.
But still, Martial Law must be enforced for only a certain period. There has to be a fixed limit. Not like
what Marcos did; he did not end it until People Power was organized to stop it and oust him.”
Stella Marie
“Months before the declaration of Martial law, my Father, his father (my grandfather) and my male
uncles and my father’s male friends about his age then (my father was about 48 years old then)
would discuss about the impending declaration of martial law. It was like they were having a debate
as to whether or not Marcos was going to declare Martial law. When it was finally declared about two
days later, my Father remarked that it was his saddest birthday ever. (His birthday was September
22.) And then there was the curfew (12midnight to 4 am). I was briefed by my father not to speak
anything against Marcos, that I should not tell others about what I heard during the discussions in
the house re Martial Law. I heard the names of those who were rounded up and put in jails for
opposing Marcos, and later, about Primitivo Mijares who was a favoured Marcos journalist but who
later turned against Marcos and how he just disappeared. The Free Press and the other newspapers
that used to criticize Marcos before Martial Law was sanitized—no more negative reports about
Marcos and the administration.
No, never again. Please see the posts that I share.. Everything is well documented. Shame on us
Filipinos if we have not learned our lesson.” (See Stella’s Martial Law posts here)
These are just some of the insights given by those who have either witnessed or experienced the
Martial Law years. We’re still waiting for the others to give us their stories. We’ll post them as soon
as we get them. In the meantime, maybe you’d like to check out these sources and find out more
about the Martial Law period. They’re full of interesting stories that can give you a picture of what
transpired during those years.
http://www.oovrag.com/essays/essay2007b-1.shtml
http://www.filipiknow.net/facts-about-ferdinand-marcos/
http://www.gov.ph/featured/declaration-of-martial-law/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJKOQiojrMQ (video)

Each one of us has our own perception of Martial Law. Some believe it was good for the country,
while others swear they won’t want to experience it ever again. For those who were caught in the
crossfire, their stories are different. Their stories are real. These stories are what we should all know
about. There is no right or wrong answer to the question “What did the Martial Law years do to
you?”. There is only the truth.

Democracy has been ceased and no news opposing the marcos administration can be seen in
broadsheet and even in the broadcast media such as radio and television

Closure on media stations that attack the wrong doings and failures of the marcos administration

Martial law brought back love of country and desire for democracy

Martial law brought us discipline obedience and loyalty to the one in power

Martial law opened the minds of the citizens to move, to join and to fight and to have freedom. Human
rights should not be sacrificed to just obtain a common goal.
Mr. Siasat was born in Cavite , Philippines . He is currently in his mid sixties. He has happily
been married to his current wife for several years and they both have two children. While he was
growing up in the Philippines , he experienced the Martial Law which was under the rule of
President Marcos at that time. It brought serious outrages by the people of Philippines . Mr.
Siasat lives to tell the story.

It was very a very awful time to live in the Philippines during Martial Law. This horrid law was
ruled by President Marcos. I believe it was declared in September 1971, though I do not
remember the actual date. It became listed in 1983 though. The people of the Philippines wanted
to rebel this law ever since it was determined by President Marcos. No one agreed to this law and
it caused much destruction amongst the whole country.

One of the things that I can remember from the Martial Law was the curfews that were set up. It
was around 11 o’clock, that if you were still on the road, the metropolitan police would cite you
for that. You would then have to clean the freeways or the streets. Don’t get me wrong either
because the police did not treat people in such a… well, nice
way.

During Martial Law, President Marcos and his men had

control all over us. This was why people began to rebel. There
was so much hatred and grief going on because of his reign.
To be honest with you, I personally liked it better when
President Estrada was president. He was a president that got
impeached too, by the way.

For as far as authorities go, there was only like one person so
uh.. basically, they had control over many areas. Some of the
things that were run by these men were the government,
private sectors, and even business centers. It really started to get chaotic.

There weren’t ways that a justice system can help the people because there wasn’t one that time!
Can you imagine how much more oppressive it was to live in a country without a justice system?
This became a reason why Marcos and his men were able to do many villainous things.

There were many times when Marcos and his men would even kidnap people who were after the
government. These men were feared by many, but there were many rebels that encouraged others
to rebel against them. It was a dangerous thing to do, but after everything, it was worth not
seeing Marcos as president ever again. This was why there were many anti-Marcos groups.

Sadly, there was child labor. It is really sad because we can not really consult with that since they
need money. There are many areas of Philippines that are the ghettos, even today. The economy
is not so great so I can assure you, there is still child labor in the Philippines till today.

The black markets played a huge role during that time. Illegal items were sold here and there.
People needed money for various reasons. One of the main reasons was because there was so
much poverty going on. Another reason was because we needed to pay those scums so much
money for bribes. As for the money system that time, it was seven pesos that equaled one U.S
dollar.

One positive side was that women had rights to protest just as men were. Basically, there wasn’t
really any sexism going on if you were a woman. You had the rights of men too. In fact, after the
dictatorship, a Filipina (Filipino woman) became a president. She was the first woman to ever
become president in the Philippines as well.

A positive side was that we weren’t charged so much for tax. In fact, we don’t pay as much tax
as we do here, in America . The only problem is, the tax does not always go to the right places.
They often go to many non-governmental areas. Basically, it doesn’t go to the pockets that some
might think they are going to; however, the Philippines continues to work into a better economy
and country.

Interview by Terri Hong