History of the Philippines (1965–86)

Republic of the Philippines
Republika ng Pilipinas
← 1973–1986 →   →
Flag (1985–1986) Coat of arms
Anthem Lupang Hinirang "Chosen Land"
Location of the Philippines in Southeast Asia.
Capital		Manila
Languages		Filipino Spanish English
Government		Dominant-party Constitutional Republic under Military Junta being administered by the President
President
•	1965–1986	Ferdinand Marcos
Vice President
•	1965-1972	Fernando Lopez
•	1986	Arturo Tolentino
Prime Minister
•	1978-1981	Ferdinand Marcos
•	1981-1986	Cesar Virata
•	1986	Salvador Laurel
Legislature		Batasang Pambansa
History
•	1973 Constitution	January 17, 1973
•	EDSA Revolution	February 25, 1986
Currency		Philippine peso

The history of the Philippines, from 1965–1986, covers the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos. The Marcos era includes the final years of the Third Republic (1965–72), the Philippines under martial law (1972–81), and the majority of the Fourth Republic (1981–86).

The Marcos administration (1965–72)

First term

In 1965, Ferdinand Marcos won the Presidential election and became the 10th President of the Philippines. His first term was marked with increased industrialization and the creation of solid infrastructure nationwide, such as the North Luzon Expressway and the Maharlika Highway. Marcos did this by appointing a cabinet composed mostly of technocrats and intellectuals, by increasing funding to the Armed Forces, and mobilizing them to help in construction. Marcos also established schools and learning institutions nationwide, more than the combined total of those established by his predecessors.

In 1968, Senator Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. warned that Marcos was on the road to establishing "a garrison state" by "ballooning the armed forces budget", saddling the defense establishment with "overstaying generals" and "militarizing our civilian government offices". These were prescient comments in the light of events that would happen in the following decade.^[1] Marcos also sent 10,450 Filipino soldiers to Vietnam during his term, under the PHILCAG (Philippine Civic Action Group). Fidel Ramos, who was later to become the 12th President of the Philippines, was a part of this expeditionary force.

Second term

In 1969, Marcos ran for a second term (allowable under the 1935 constitution then in effect^[2]), and won against 11 other candidates. Marcos began his second term by creating a personality cult of sorts around himself, mandating that all public institutions must carry a picture of the President, and even replacing some billboards with his propaganda messages.

Marcos' second term was marked by economic turmoil brought about by factors both external and internal, a restless student body who demanded educational reforms, a rising crime rate, and a growing Communist insurgency, among other things.

The crisis boiled over on October 30, 1970 during a massive protest in Mendiola now known as the First Quarter Storm, where student protesters and communist elements were forcefully quelled by military forces. This marked a period of intense student protesting and violence around Metro Manila, especially near the University Belt.

Ferdinand Marcos, president from 1965–1986.

At one point, student activists took over the Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines and declared it a free commune, which lasted for a while before the government dissolved it. Violent protesting continued over the next few years until the declaration of martial law in 1972.

Plaza Miranda bombing

On August 21, 1971, the Liberal Party held a campaign rally at the Plaza Miranda to proclaim their Senatorial bets and their candidate for the Mayoralty of Manila. Two grenades were reportedly tossed on stage, injuring almost everybody present. As a result, Marcos suspended the writ of habeas corpus in order to arrest those behind the attack. He rounded up a list of supposed suspects, Maoists, and other undesirables in an effort to eliminate rivals in the Liberal Party.

Martial law (1972–1981)

In September 1972, then Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile was ambushed while en route home. This assassination attempt (which has been confirmed to have been staged^[3][4][5]) together with the general citizen disquiet, a restless student body who demanded educational reforms, a rising crime rate and a growing Communist insurgency were used by Marcos as reasons to issue Presidential Proclamation No. 1081, proclaiming a State of martial law in the Philippines on September 21.^[6]

Marcos, who henceforth ruled by decree, curtailed press freedom and other civil liberties, abolished Congress, controlled media establishments, and ordered the arrest of opposition leaders and militant activists, including his staunchest critics Senators Benigno Aquino, Jr. and Jose W. Diokno. Initially, the declaration of martial law was well-received, given the social turmoil of the period. Crime rates decreased significantly after a curfew was implemented. Political opponents were given the opportunity to go into exile. As martial law went on for the next nine years, the excesses committed by the military increased.

I am president. I am the most powerful man in the Philippines. All that I have dreamt of I have. More accurately, I have all the material things I want of life — a wife who is loving and is a partner in the things I do, bright children who will carry my name, a life well lived — all. But I feel a discontent.

— Ferdinand Marcos^[7]

Though it was made clear that Martial law was no military take-over of the government, the immediate reaction of some sectors of the nation was of astonishment and dismay, for even if everyone knew that the gravity of the disorder, lawlessness, social injustice, youth and student activism and other disturbing movements had reached a point of peril, they felt that martial law over the whole country was not yet warranted. Worse, political motivations were ascribed to be behind the proclamation, since the then constitutionally non-extendible term of President Marcos was about to expire. This suspicion became more credible when opposition leaders and outspoken anti-administration media people were immediately placed under indefinite detention in military camps and other unusual restrictions were imposed on travel, communication, freedom of speech and of the press, etc. In a word, the martial law regime was anathema to no small portion of the populace.^[8]

It was in the light of the above circumstances and as a means of solving the dilemma aforementioned that the concept embodied in Amendment No. 6 was born in the Constitution of 1973. In brief, the central idea that emerged was that martial law might be earlier lifted, but to safeguard the Philippines and its people against any abrupt dangerous situation which would warrant the exercise of some authoritarian powers, the latter must be constitutionally allowed, thereby eliminating the need to proclaim martial law and its concomitants, principally the assertion by the military of prerogatives that made them appear superior to the civilian authorities below the President. In other words, the problem was what may be needed for national survival or the restoration of normalcy in the face of a crisis or an emergency should be reconciled with the popular mentality and attitude of the people against martial law.^[9]

In a recent speech before his fellow alumni of the University of the Philippines College of Law, President Marcos declared his intention to lift martial law by the end of January 1981.^[10]

The reassuring words for the skeptic came on the occasion of the University of the Philippines law alumni reunion on December 12, 1980 when the President declared: "We must erase once and for all from the public mind any doubts as to our resolve to bring martial law to an end and to minister to an orderly transition to parliamentary government." The apparent forthright irrevocable commitment was cast at the 45th anniversary celebration of the Armed Forces of the Philippines on December 22, 1980 when the President proclaimed: "A few days ago, following extensive consultations with a broad representation of various sectors of the nation and in keeping with the pledge made a year ago during the seventh anniversary of the New Society, I came to the firm decision that martial law should be lifted before the end of January, 1981, and that only in a few areas where grave problems of public order and national security continue to exist will martial law continue to remain in force."^[11]

Economy

During the early years of Martial Law, the Philippine economy grew by a significant amount, spurred by heavy borrowing from transnational banking companies and government-to-government loans. By 1980, however, the heavy burden of foreign debt servicing took its toll in the economy, and mismanagement of important industries due to crony capitalism led the economy to a downturn. The assassination of popular opposition leader Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. in 1983 led to the pull-out of foreign capital from the country, resulting in negative GDP growth in 1983 and 1984.

Parliamentary elections

The first formal elections since 1969 for an interim Batasang Pambansa (National Assembly) were held on April 7, 1978. Sen. Aquino, then in jail, decided to run as leader of his party, the Lakas ng Bayan party, but they did not win any seats in the Batasan, despite public support and their apparent victory. The night before the elections, supporters of the LABAN party showed their solidarity by setting up a "noise barrage" in Manila, creating noise the whole night until dawn.

The Fourth Republic (1981–1986)

“

We love your adherence to democratic principles and to the democratic process, and we will not leave you in isolation.

”

— U.S. Vice-President George H. W. Bush during Ferdinand Marcos inauguration, July 1981^[12]

The opposition boycotted the June 16, 1981 presidential elections, which pitted Marcos and his Kilusang Bagong Lipunan party against retired Gen. Alejo Santos of the Nacionalista Party. Marcos won by a margin of over 16 million votes, which constitutionally allowed him to have another six-year term. Finance Minister Cesar Virata was elected as Prime Minister by the Batasang Pambansa.

In 1983, opposition leader Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. was assassinated at Manila International Airport upon his return to the Philippines after a long period of exile in the United States. This coalesced popular dissatisfaction with Marcos and began a series of events, including pressure from the United States, that culminated in a snap presidential election on February 7, 1986. The opposition united under Aquino's widow, Corazon Aquino, and Salvador Laurel, head of the United Nationalists Democratic Organizations (UNIDO). The election was marred by widespread reports of violence and tampering with results by both sides.

The official election canvasser, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), declared Marcos the winner, despite a walk-out staged by disenfranchised computer technicians on February 9. According to the COMELEC's final tally, Marcos won with 10,807,197 votes to Aquino's 9,291,761 votes. By contrast, the final tally of NAMFREL, an accredited poll watcher, said Aquino won with 7,835,070 votes to Marcos's 7,053,068.^[13]

End of the Marcos regime

The fraudulent result was not accepted by Aquino and her supporters. International observers, including a U.S. delegation led by Senator Richard Lugar, denounced the official results. General Fidel Ramos and Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile then withdrew their support for the administration, defecting and barricading themselves within Camp Crame. This resulted in that peaceful 1986 EDSA Revolution that forced Marcos into exile in Hawaii while Corazon Aquino became the 11th President of the Philippines on February 25, 1986. Under Aquino, the Philippines would adopt a new constitution, ending the Fourth Republic and ushering in the beginning of the Fifth Republic.

References

1. "PHL marks 29th anniversary of Aquino's assassination on Tuesday". Office of the President of the Philippines. August 20, 2012.
2. "1935 Constitution, as amended". Official Gazette. http://www.gov.ph. External link in |publisher= (help)
3. Celoza, Albert F. (1997). Ferdinand Marcos and the Philippines: The Political Economy of Authoritarianism. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 70. ISBN 978-0-275-94137-6.
4. "True or false: Was 1972 Enrile ambush faked?". The Philippine Inquirer. 8 October 2012."Enrile on fake ambush: ‘For real’". The Philippine Inquirer. 30 September 2012.
5. "The Struggle Between Truth and Falsehood". Law and Behold!. External link in |publisher= (help) (reproducing news article reprints)
6. Presidential Proclamation No. 1081, September 21, 1972, Proclaiming a State of Martial Law in the Philippines, The LawPhil Project.
7. William C. Rempel. Delusions of a Dictator: The Mind of Marcos As Revealed in His Secret Diaries. Little Brown & Co, 1993.
8. "G.R. No. L-58289 July 24, 1982".
9. Legaspoi, Valentino. "G.R. No. L-58289 July 24, 1982". horizontal tab character in |title= at position 17 (help) (note 29)
10. Tan, Silverio Benny. "THE PHILIPPINES AFTER THE LIFTING OF MARTIAL LAW: A LINGERING AUTHORITARIANISM" (PDF). Retrieved 30 September 2012.
11. Carag, Carlo. "THE LEGAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE LIFTING OF MARTIAL LAW IN THE PHILIPPINES" (PDF).
12. Philippines: Together Again, TIME Magazine, July 13, 1981
13. Peter Ackerman; Jack DuVall (2001), A force more powerful: a century of nonviolent conflict, Macmillan, p. 384, ISBN 978-0-312-24050-9;
    ^ Isabelo T. Crisostomo (1987), Cory—profile of a president, Branden Books, p. 193, ISBN 978-0-8283-1913-3 (showing a reproduction of NAMFREL's announcement of the results).

External links

• The Timeline of Philippine History: Second Independence