Martial law survivor asks SC to reverse Marcos burial

MANILA - Martial Law survivor and Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman has asked the High Court to reverse the burial of Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani on behalf of the desaparecidos or those who went missing at the height of the dictatorship.

In a statement, Lagman said, ""It is not hard to comprehend that the interment of Marcos in the Cemetery of Heroes is inextricably intertwined with the late dictator's imposition of martial law which spawned inordinate oppression, corruption and plunder for 14 ignominious years and even beyond."

"It is not difficult to understand that allowing his burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani is a veritable honor accorded to a disgraced President and Commander-in-Chief who was deposed by the sovereign people for having committed grievous sins against the Filipino people as acknowledged by no less than the Honorable Supreme Court in a number of landmark decisions and validated by foreign judicial tribunals."


Lagman said Marcos' burial is an impediment to the continuing quest for justice for the victims of martial law, adding that it "perpetuates the impunity of his transgressions and mocks the unfinished task of recovering his hoard of ill-gotten wealth."

"These are the very reasons why the Marcos burial in LNMB transcends politics. These are the very reasons why President Duterte's policy on burying Marcos in the LNMB is not a political question which is beyond the judicial scalpel to excise.

"These are the very reasons why such a policy is flawed and its implementation is tainted with gross abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction because it violates the Constitution, relevant statues and pertinent decisions of the Honorable Supreme Court, all of which are justiciable.

"It is not remote to realize that the Marcos burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani is a gross distortion, a malevolent revision and a wanton derogation of Philippine history."

 Lagman invoked the following grounds for reconsideration:

1. Marcos' burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) will not lead to closure.

2. AFP Regulations G 161-375 dated September 11, 2002 issued by the Department of National Defense is not effective and enforceable, and consequently, it could not be the basis for the interment of Marcos in the LNMB.

3. There are laws and Supreme Court decisions which militate against and effectively prohibit the Marcos burial in the LNMB.

4. The message of the EDSA people power revolution is clear and resounding: Marcos was ousted for being a despot, plunderer and violator of human rights.

5. When the totality of Marcos as a man is weighed in the balance, whatever achievements he has done for the country are completely nullified by his cardinal sins against the nation, for which he is not entitled to be buried in the LNMB.

6. The Marcos family had waived his burial in the LNMB 24 years ago.

7. The petitions do not involve a political question, which is an almost extinct invocation.

8. Respondents committed grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction.

9. Petitioners have legal personality to file cases, did not violate the "hierarchy of courts" doctrine, and did not have to exhaust administrative remedies.

10. Ferdinand Edralin Marcos does not deserve the honor of being interred in the Libingan ng mga Bayani even as a former President and soldier per se.

Lagman said that no closure would be achieved if it is at the expense of the victims of the brutalities and corruption of Marcos' martial law regime, and for the hollow gratification and flawed vindication of a tyrant and his heirs.

He added that the speed and stealth by which the Marcos burial was carried out by the immediate members of the Marcos family shows their incorrigible addiction to deception, underhandedness and abuse, which the Supreme Court must never condone.


According to Lagman, the majority decision erred in solely basing the burial of Marcos in the LMNB on AFP Regulations G 161-375 because the said issuance by the Department of National Defense is not effective and enforceable for absence of registration with the Office of the National Administrative Registrar (ONAR) of the University of the Philippine Law Center as required by the Administrative Code of 1987.

Lagman renewed his plea for the exhumation of "whatever was interred as Marcos mortal remains" at the LMNB on 18 November 2016 despite the lack of finality of the challenged Decision together with its ancillary directive lifting the Status Quo Ante Order.

He also prayed for the forensic examination on whatever is exhumed to determine what actually was buried at the LMNB.

He sought the reversal of the decision and the issuance of a writ of prohibition enjoining the public respondents from implementing the order of President Duterte on the Marcos burial.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

10,000 march to protest Marcos' divisive burial

MANILA - Thousands of Filipinos demonstrated on Friday against last week's burial of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos in a heroes' cemetery, showing disdain for the veneration afforded to a strongman accused of widespread plunder and brutality.

Those persecuted during martial law under Marcos joined students and activists in marches in Manila, in what was a subdued show of anger at a burial with military honors that was kept under wraps until just a few hours beforehand.

Marcos ruled the Philippines for 20 years, imposing martial law in 1972 and governing by decree in what was one of the darkest chapters of the country's history.

President Rodrigo Duterte had called for the burial, 27 years after Marcos's death, arguing that as a former military man and head of state, he met the criteria for a place in the heroes' cemetery.

The family remains a highly influential political force and has relentlessly pushed for the burial of Marcos in what critics say is an attempt to clear his name.

Judges on the Supreme Court on Nov. 8 ruled 9-5 in favor of throwing out petitions against the burial.

At the peak, about 10,000 rallied in the capital's Rizal Park on Friday, many under umbrellas following an afternoon of rain. They held banners and placards saying "Marcos no hero" and "You can't bury the truth".


Duterte was not in Manila on Friday. He said though he did not share the sentiment of the protesters, but would not try to stop them.

"I may disagree, but I will defend their rights," he said.

Tens of thousands of suspected communist rebels and political foes were killed before Marcos's 1986 ouster in a "people's power" revolt. He died in exile in Hawaii three years later.

In 1986, a commission was created to recover the Marcos family's wealth, which was estimated at $10 billion worth of property, cash, stocks, jewelry and pieces of art. It has, so far, recovered about half.

The body of Marcos was until last week kept in a mausoleum in his home province. Successive governments blocked the burial because they were either led by opponents of Marcos or had bowed to public pressure.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Thousands expected at 'Black Friday' protest vs Marcos burial

MANILA - Some 20,000 people wearing black shirts will gather at sundown in the capital's main park on Friday to protest former president Ferdinand Marcos' burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (Heroes' Cemetery), a rally organizer said.

Victims of human rights abuse and veteran figures who led the fight against the Marcos dictatorship will join students in Luneta in what is hoped to be the first of many mass actions against the internment, which was approved by President Rodrigo Duterte.

"This is going to be much bigger than what we've seen in recent months because institutions that do not traditionally send protesters are joining," Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses to Malacañang (CARMMA) convenor Bonifacio Ilagan told ABS-CBN News.

Ilagan said all schools along the university belt in downtown Manila would send contingents to the "Black Friday" protest.

Marcos was buried in a surprise, closely-guarded ceremony last week, sparking outrage among groups who accuse him and his family of stealing up to $10 billion from state coffers.

Former senators Rene Saguisag and Bobby Tanada are expected to join the protest, while "surprise celebrities and guests" will provide entertainment during the program, Ilagan said.

"Our protests are aimed at the reversal of the burial and for President Rodrigo Duterte to once and for all abandon his alliance with the Marcoses," Bagong Alyansang Makabayan Secretary General Renato Reyes said.


"The people hold Duterte accountable for the burial. The people likewise demand an end to a system of political accommodation and compromise among the elite," he added.

Police said maximum tolerance would be observed.

"Pabayaan namin sila. Sa kanila na yang mga plaza, mga kalsada kung gusto nila. Hindi na namin sila pakialaman," Philippine National Police Chief, Director General Ronald Dela Rosa, said Thursday.

(We will let them do what they want. They can occupy the plaza and the streets if they want. We will not meddle with their affairs.)

In a separate interview with ANC's Dateline Philippines, Ilagan said he is still uncertain what the future holds, but Friday's demonstration will definitely not be the last.

"This, the second ‘Black Friday Protest,’ I think this is going to be the second in a series of protest actions—maybe not necessarily every Friday, but this is definitely going to continue," he said.

"Ang laban ngayon ay laban na para sa isip at damdamin ng taongbayan, and we know that the protests are going to happen not only in the National Capital Region, but in so many urban and towns all over the Philippines—Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao," he added.

(Today's fight is a fight for the people's minds and hearts, and we know that the protests are going to happen not only in the National Capital Region, but in so many urban and towns all over the Philippines—Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Late dictator Marcos buried at Libingan ng mga Bayani

MANILA - The late dictator Ferdinand Marcos was buried hurriedly at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (Heroes Cemetery) on Friday, as the family embarked on a political revival while thousands who suffered under his two-decade-long rule still cry for justice.

Former first lady Imelda Marcos, wearing black terno, clutched a rosary, as soldiers carrying his wooden casket marched slowly to his grave, a video released by the family showed. The ceremonies were closed to the public.

The late dictator's children all wore white. His only living sibling, Fortuna Marcos-Barba watched the burial from her wheelchair, according to footage from the Facebook page of his eldest daughter, Ilocos Norte Rep. Imee Marcos.



The Supreme Court (SC) on November 8 rejected a petition by human rights victims to stop the transfer of Marcos' remains to the same resting place of former presidents, national artists, and heroes of war.

President Rodrigo Duterte, an ally of the Marcoses, allowed the burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, which was the late strongman's last wish, according to his family.

Marcos' remains were transferred by helicopter from Ilocos Norte province, where it had been kept since it was brought back to the country in 1993. He died while on exile in Hawaii in 1989, three years after he was ousted by a military-backed popular revolt.

“We should not be surprised because that’s how Marcos lived, in defiance of the law, illegally and that’s how he will be buried, again in defiance of the law and with his body being snuck in the Libingan ng mga Bayani surrounded by military and police guards,” said human rights lawyer Barry Gutierrez.

Although there is a 15-day period following the issuance of the SC decision for a motion for reconsideration to be filed, this does not prevent the Marcos family from pursuing the burial at heroes' cemetery.

"Even if there is a 15 day period, there was no order restraining the act," SC spokesman Theodore Te added.

The country marked the 30th anniversary of Marcos' ouster this year, with 75,000 victims still awaiting reparation.

The Marcoses allegedly plundered $10 billion from state coffers during their reign and only $4 billion in cash and assets have been recovered by an anti-graft body formed by his successor, the late president Corazon Aquino.

The late dictator's only son and namesake, Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., narrowly lost the vice-presidential race this year to Leni Robredo, an ally of the family's political nemesis and Duterte's immediate predecessor, Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.

His widow, former first lady Imelda Marcos is a congresswoman in Ilocos Norte while his eldest daughter, Imee, is the provincial governor.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com