#title The Never-ending Martial Law
#subtitle An Anarchist Reflection on the 21st of September
#author Malaginoo
#LISTtitle Never-ending Martial Law
#SORTauthors Malaginoo
#SORTtopics Philippines, dictatorship
#date September 21, 2020
#uid The Never-ending Martial Law
#source https://bandilangitim.noblogs.org/2020/09/21/the-never-ending-martial-law/
#lang en
#pubdate 2021-01-12T04:01:38
#language English
#publication Bandilang Itim
To ignore and forget the declaration of Martial Law, the infamous yet
eclectic day of September 21st of 1972 that continues to
govern our social consciousness is to reject outright what has made us
people of this archipelago. It would be catastrophic to do so while many
of its guiding principles continue as state policy. Crony companies are
still [[https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/17/20/danding-cojuangco-dies][alive
and kicking]], controlling the local economy without competition or
consideration for their workers. Local and national politics is dominate
by the same players even
the [[https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/842183/timeline-of-marcos-familys-comeback-in-philippines][children
and grandchildren of the dictator]]. All while the debt and financial
ruin that was incurred by the State continues
to [[https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/774774/well-pay-marcos-debt-until-2025][drain]] Filipinos
pockets dry every year.
Whether we like it or not, the Marcos era, governed through a martial
law,
is [[https://news.abs-cbn.com/focus/09/21/18/by-the-numbers-human-rights-violations-during-marcos-rule][responsible]] for
the injuries, deaths, and disappearances of hundreds and thousands of
people, the suppression of the freedom of expression, assembly, and the
press, and the rise of insurgency borne out of oppression and
exacerbated social inequality. The actions of one strongman, done
through his sycophants and attack dogs, have affected the psyche of our
society so much that we are still reeling with its repercussions to this
day. In fact, one can argue that the Martial Law has crafted the
republic we know today.
Simply put, we wouldn’t be Filipinos as we are today if it wasn’t for
Martial Law. And that’s the reason why we shouldn’t — in fact, can’t —
stop bringing it back to the everyday discourse.
We can’t stop seeing Marcos loyalists, Duterte Diehard Supporters, or
the inevitable amalgamations of both camps constantly debating,
challenging, and attacking even the idea of Martial Law. They reject the
notion of Marcos’ regime being anything but totally benevolent and
beneficial to the society in the archipelago. Of course, it’s easy to
disprove their arguments once their endless army of faceless Twitter
trolls, second-rate former journalists, and contrarian lawyers and
opinion writers start using insults the likes have not been seen since
Kindergarten. But their disturbance keeps kicking up the dust obscuring
the Marcos legacy from modern-day accountability.
We can’t stop the witnessing the rebirth of the Imelda, and Bongbong,
and Imee, and their accession to the government’s inner circle like
Father Macoy. We watch them waltz into the halls of power with
the [[https://news.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/09/30/19/the-duterte-marcos-connection][blessing]] of
the Chief Executive. This is while it was clear their family were
complicit, if not instrumental, in the terrors of oppression and
exploitation that became part of everyday life in the Philippines for
twenty years.
Yet we also can’t stop listening to the stories of the survivors of
Martial Law. Today, they are the activists and organizers who constantly
remind the populace of the sins of the Marcoses, of the capitalists who
supported their regime, and of the dynasties that were propped up during
their rule. They recount the horrors of the military men who turned
civilians into guinea pigs for their experiments into finding
the [[https://rappler.com/nation/torture-martial-law-marcos-regime][worst
ways to treat human beings]].
We can’t stop the actions of our fellow countrymen to commemorate those
whose lives we merely recount and not partake in. Today, those who have
an ounce of respect for history kept vigil at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani
to reassemble the old and to motivate the young to stop by whatever
means they see fit to stop the resurgence of reaction, of the overtures
to dictatorship even in the midst of a world-stopping pandemic.
Yet, for those who are aware of the ironies of history, the question
suddenly comes up: Why can’t we stop? Didn’t we already do that before?
Wasn’t it the point of People Power? Wasn’t it “Never Forget and Never
Again,” chanted over and over to the point it defined the new Republic,
and its guiding laws, and its guiding figures? Now we ask ourselves, do
they mean anything now that we are living these circumstances again?
The short answer is that nothing really changed after 1986. We talk
about revolutions, and Constitutions, and tying yellow ribbons, but once
we shed the rhetoric and the facades, we start to see that the systems
that were in place, the institutions that were instrumental to rule, and
even the characters and playbooks of politics and governance stayed the
same. Everyone went back to their everyday lives, but the same problems
still manifested itself, demonstrating that changing the King to a Queen
doesn’t mean we have removed the throne.
If anything stayed constant, it’s the fact the State and Capital
remained [[https://onenews.ph/of-plunder-and-politics][intimately
tied]] with each other. Corruption and plunder in its various forms
remained facts of life in the every echelon of government. Today we see
it
in [[https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/8/4/PhilHealth-P15-billion-stolen-mafia-execs.html][PhilHealth]],
but this intricate system of patrons, clients, and contractors where
politicians can kickback money from public projects, has not changed its
form since Republic immemorial.
Another connecting thread is the continuing influence entrepreneurs
impress upon politicians in order to protect their property and
influence. To this day agrarian reform continues to elude and evade the
toilers of the land. This greed was so severe that it was seen
immediately after People Power Revolution with the government reaction
to peasant protests that were headed straight for Malacañang: the
Mendiola Massacre. And this continues on for
action [[https://globalnation.inquirer.net/180127/113-environmental-activists-killed-since-duterte-assumed-office-intl-group][against
environmental damage]] and
the [[https://rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/threats-attacks-philippines-media-timeline][suppression
of information]] across the country.
Even the phenomenon of “crony capitalism” has returned to public
discussion. While it is true that an “oligarchy,” meaning a handful of
billionaire families and personalities
already [[https://rappler.com/business/henry-sy-forbes-richest-philippines-2017][own]] over
a quarter of the gross domestic product of the country, the rise of
President Duterte also came with
the [[https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/The-Big-Story/Crony-capital-How-Duterte-embraced-the-oligarchs][rise]] of
his own set of corporate supporters and backers, such as the owner of
Phoenix Petroleum Dennis Uy, whom Duterte supported when he was a
struggling capitalist baron. Through Duterte’s “wisdom” he was able to
expand his businesses, and become a top donor for the Duterte
presidential campaign. He now owns DITO Telecom, a supposed third entry
into the telecommunications duopoly of Smart and Globe, working in
cooperation with the Chinese state telco China Telecom. Don’t let the
populist rhetoric fool you. His campaign against the “oligarchy,”
particularly ABS-CBN, is simply another exercise in corporate
competition and strong-arming the opposition for his own gain.
Meanwhile, the police and military has continued to be rife with human
rights abuses and violations, with a dirty laundry list
of [[https://rappler.com/newsbreak/in-depth/lives-in-danger-duterte-government-red-tagging-campaign][red-tagging]], [[https://interaksyon.philstar.com/politics-issues/2020/04/27/167200/illegal-detention-pnp-hit-anew-for-arrest-of-worker-and-student-over-quarantine-violations/][detention
without
basis]], [[https://www.philrights.org/the-war-on-the-poor-extrajudicial-killings-and-their-effects-on-urban-poor-families-and-communities/][extra-judicial
killings]],
and [[https://rappler.com/nation/timeline-attacks-lumad-mindanao][attacks
on indigenous land]]. Under Duterte alone, those killed in police and
military operations under the guise of “anti-narcotics” and
“anti-insurgency” in thousands and ten thousands.
Yet, Duterte is not unique in this regard. Under Arroyo, armed groups
including paramilitary forces were given free reign, notably
the [[https://www.hrw.org/report/2009/04/06/you-can-die-any-time/death-squad-killings-mindanao][Davao
Death Squad]]. It was also under Arroyo’s time
that [[https://rappler.com/nation/bulacan-court-judgment-kidnapping-illegal-detention-cases-vs-jovito-palparan-september-17-2018][Jovito
Palparan]], the “berdugo” responsible for the torture and death of
students Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño, and his ilk were allowed to
freely persecute those they considered “communists.” Even the darling of
the liberals, Benigno Aquino III was not free from criticism, as it was
under his administration that slaying of
journalists [[https://www.manilatimes.net/2016/05/28/opinion/editorial/more-than-30-journalists-killed-during-the-bs-aquino-regime/264718/][reached
its highest]] since 1986.
And we haven’t even mentioned the pandering to foreign powers that was
perfected by Marcos in the run-up to Operation Sagittarius. While
Laurel-Langley might have ended in 1974, U.S. bases remained in the
country into the Cory Aquino era. The Visiting Forces Agreement and its
Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, protecting US soldiers from any
responsibility and accountability were signed under Estrada and Aquino
III respectively. Duterte takes the cake though, as not only did he
prove himself to be the perfect lapdog to
China [[https://rappler.com/business/china-funded-kaliwa-dam-to-benefit-from-duterte-order-fast-tracking-water-projects][over]] [[https://globalnation.inquirer.net/188313/duterte-assures-xi-of-phs-commitment-to-maintain-ties-with-china-amid-challenges][the]] [[https://rappler.com/nation/duterte-praises-china-xi-jinping-coronavirus-briefing][years]],
he showed he’s still an imperialist’s lackey with
the [[https://rappler.com/nation/us-marine-joseph-scott-pemberton-now-free-man][release]] of
Marine Scott Pemberton for the murder of Jennifer Laude.
Underlying all of these issues are the only constants in Philippine
society: the overall control held
by [[https://rappler.com/newsbreak/in-depth/map-major-political-families-philippines-after-elections-2019][political
families]] and dynasties over business, finance, media, leading to the
local and national governments. While dynasties have been around since
the dawn of the current system of government, many of those that exist
today can trace their rise to power to their loyalties to Marcos and the
post-Marcos governments.
Through the power they hold, the ones who are placed into the highest
office, whether through rigged elections or strong-armed action, find
themselves with the power and machinery of the state to enrich
themselves, further their interests, and support those who they deem are
useful for upcoming propaganda battles or challenges by liberal,
progressive, and radical opposition.
And we cannot rely on that opposition either, because when they are in
government, they become the complicit yes-men, if not outright
oppressors they campaign so fiercely against when the elections near.
Even if with two People Powers, and many more hotly contested elections
where decency and democracy are at stake, it will always be “business as
usual” for the blood-thirsty military, the blood-sucking neoliberal
economic planners, and the soulless demagogues peddling their programs
for “change” and “competence.”
The Republic will continue to operate with impunity as long as it
exists, which is why it’s even more painful to analyze Martial Law and
its implications in our society today. What so many people have fought
for, what so many people have agitated against bringing back, what
situation we are currently living in is the liberal democratic state at
its logical extreme: authoritarianism, dictatorship, state fascism.
So as long as the state exists, and exist it shall for as long we do not
act against those pushing their interests and tossing their problems for
us to solve in agony and destitution, we will always have the specter of
Martial Law watching closely behind us from mere inches away. While we
have this vaudeville of a democracy entertaining us with bread and
circuses every couple of years, hiding behind it is the monstrosity that
is the complex of State and of Capital.
It doesn’t matter how democratic our processes are, how responsible and
competent the courts, and the departments, and the bureaus may be, how
intelligent our Vice President is compared to everyone else in the
Executive Branch. As long as we have a government to even speak of, we
only need an ambitious enough person, with enough support and coddling
from abroad and at home, for Ferdy and Rody to rise again.
That is why Martial Law will never be finished. The memories will never
be fully forgotten, but merely suppressed. Because we know that with the
imperfect system we have, once we cease our vigilance, we will exchange
it with our liberty and with our blood. Because we know that if we stop
looking back at the past, we will see the ghosts of those who died at
the hands of the feared Constabulary, whose khaki uniforms have been
replaced with the bloody blue of the Philippine National Police. We will
watch as those souls will not find rest as the injustices inflicted
against them remained unanswered, and haunt our every waking hour as a
society.
The Marcoses have asked why we can’t move on. We respond that Martial
Law never really ended. We’re just waiting for the next person to
declare it officially, and it’s like nothing changed at all. There is so
much power in the hands of the State with the Anti-Terror Law fully in
place, funded by the millions pouring into the President’s *intelligence
funds*, propagandized by the fake news cheerleaders at
the [[https://rappler.com/nation/lorraine-badoy-red-tagging-causes-suspension-of-pcoo-2021-budget-hearing][PCOO]] and [[https://rappler.com/nation/duterte-task-force-behind-red-tagging-part-of-covid-19-strategic-communications][NTF-ELCAC]].
If Duterte has any *delicadeza* he’d finally say it on one of his
late-night talks with the Cabinet. Alas, it remains undeclared for now.
Even in the time of a pandemic, when the government’s supposed role as
the protector of the public good is most necessary, the State merely
rears its ugly head. So you want to see proof that we are still living
in Martial
Law? [[https://libcom.org/blog/against-quarantine-martial-law-characteristics-03042020][Just
look outside]].