Bayan marks Martial Law declaration with march to Mendiola, challenge to candidates to go after GMA
The umbrella group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan will lead a protest march tomorrow to Mendiola Bridge to mark the 37th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law. The group renewed its commitment to fight any reimposition of Marcosian rule and called on aspiring presidential bets to make a stand in pursuing justice for Arroyo’s human rights victims.
“We join the nation in commemorating this dark period in our nation’s history along with the strong resolve to never again allow the terror of martial rule to be imposed on the Filipino people. We ask those aspiring for office to make the same pledge,” said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.
Bayan said that presidential bets must make sure that justice is achieved for both the victims of the Marcos dictatorship as well as the hundreds of victims of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances under the Arroyo government.
“There also has to be a commitment that human rights violators from the Arroyo regime will be made accountable. The present tragedy is that justice has long been denied for the Marcos rights victims. It would be another tragedy if the same fate befell the Arroyo regime’s victims,” Reyes said.
“Those vowing to bring change to Malacanang must place human rights and justice on top of their agenda. The accountability of public officials involved in various atrocities, from the time of Marcos to Arroyo, should form part of the candidates’ platform,” he added.
Bayan also criticized administration bet Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro for his apparent lack of interest in going after human rights violators even during his stint as defense secretary. “Mr. Teodoro is the least likely to prosecute those accused of human rights abuses under the Arroyo regime. It doesn’t seem to rank high in his priorities. He continues to defend the Armed Forces of the Philippines against allegations of human rights abuses. He will also most likely rely on the support of the military for his electoral bid,” Reyes said.
“We already know Teodoro is pro-US. We are watching if he also has a militarist streak. He should at least clarify what he will do to resolve the issues involving the Marcos wealth and the Marcos victims,” he added.
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Senator Noynoy Aquino, presidential bet of the Liberal Party, on the other hand has made a strong commitment to recover the Marcos ill-gotten wealth. He has however been asked to move to resolve the conflict at his family’s Hacienda Luisita which has claimed the lives of at least 14 farmers, workers and their supporters. Aquino has announced that his family may give up its stake in Hacienda Luisita, a move that was followed by calls for the distribution of land.
Bayan also called on presidential bets to work against any scenario that would give the military the power to install a head of state in the event of a failure of elections. Senate president Juan Ponce Enrile warned that a failure of elections would lead to a power vacuum and will empower the military to install the next president.
“A military junta in the event of a failure of elections is a dangerous scenario which we must not allow to happen. That would hardly be a departure from the Marcos martial law,” Reyes said.###
