ABUSED AUTHORITY
"Then-president Ferdinand Marcos Sr. announces on national television on Sept. 23, 1972 that he has placed the Philippines under martial law" (The Manila Times).
Ferdinand Marcos's 23-year-long administration was fraught with economic crisis and human rights violations used to consolidate power.
Politician Ferdinand Marcos Sr. won the 1965 presidential election against Former President Diosdado Macapagal, beginning Marcos's term as the tenth president of the Philippines.
Economic Crisis
“Marcos and his allies enriched themselves through ownership of Philippine press and industry outlets and through the siphoning of funds from U.S., World Bank, and International Monetary Fund loans” (Sanchez).
Marcos amassed “a foreign debt of $27 billion” with the Philippine National Bank reporting a loss of 1.2 billion USD from loans given by Marcos (Asian Journal San Diego).
“By 1985, anywhere from two-thirds to three-fourths of some 54 million Filipinos were poor; at least 27 million Filipinos or up to half (49%) of the population were in extreme poverty” (IBON Foundation).
“[Marcos's wife had] 15 mink coats...508 floor-length gowns, 888 handbags...1060 pairs [of shoes]”
(Time, “World Notes INVESTIGATION”).
Imelda Marcos's extensive shoe collection (Shoe Museum in Manila).
Marcos’s Declarations
Marcos declared martial law in September 1972 and took measures to prevent opposition under the pretense of eradicating communist presence in the Philippines, thus amplifying his control over the nation (University of Central Arkansas), (Dunlap).
Proclamation no. 1081, September 22, 1972:
“[I] do hereby command the armed forces of the Philippines...[to] prevent or suppress... any act of insurrection or rebellion" (Proclamation No. 1081).
- Marcos Sr.
(PROCLAMATION NO. 1081)
“ to prevent the use of...media of communications, for propaganda purposes against the Government...or for any purpose that tends to undermine the faith and confidence of the people in our Government and aggravate the present national emergency, you are hereby ordered forthwith to take over and control...all such...media of communications” (Marcos Sr., Ferdinand).
- Marcos Sr.Letter of Instruction No. 1 to the Secretary of National Defense, September 22, 1972
Effects on the Nation
“President Marcos told Amnesty International that over 50,000 people [were] arrested and detained under martial law [by 1975]…includ[ing] church workers, human rights defenders, legal aid lawyers, labour leaders and journalists” ("Five thing to know about Martial Law in the Philippines").
In an interview, Raphael Carandang recalls the effect of Marcos’s strict government control on his grade school experience in the Philippines:
(Carandang)
Political cartoons emphasized the dissatisfaction of the people:
(“President Marcos holds the Republic of the Philippines smile's open”)
(“Military rule depicted as a thumb, suppressing the people”)
Martial Law enabled Marcos to utilize dictator-like powers to uplift his allies and suppress the people.
◄ THESIS
AQUINO'S ASSASSINATION ►