While then President Ferdinand Marcos had a valid reason to declare martial law on Sept. 21, 1972 to supposedly prevent a communist takeover, it spawned abuses which still continue to haunt Filipinos today, Malacanang said yesterday.
Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo pointed out that even the framers of the 1987 Constitution acknowledged the “necessity” of martial law “to save the Republic from ruin against the enemies of the State.”
However, Panelo acknowledged that despite the good it has done, its abuses have scarred an entire generation.
“The imposition of martial law and the abuses it spawned even as it instilled discipline among the citizenry at its inception, as well as reaping success in dismantling the then spreading communist insurgency in the country, created a deep wound to an entire generation,” Panelo said in a statement released a day after the 47th martial law anniversary. “Regardless of political persuasion, the Marcos martial law continues to haunt those who have traumatic experiences during the one-man rule,” he added.
Panelo said Filipinos should reflect to learn the lessons from the past and use them to unite as one people and one country.
He, however, emphasized that if not for the abuses, martial law would have been democratic.
“Those who perceive that a declaration of martial law is anti-democratic are oblivious of the fact that its application is precisely the very tool to save the exercise of democracy,” Panelo said. “It is only when it is clothed with abuse by its enforcers that it becomes obnoxious. Necessarily, its proclamation arises only upon constitutional dictates. Any violation thereof subjects the transgressors to the wrath and vengeance of the Constitution,” he added.
Panelo urged all Filipinos to “look at the past to guide us on what to do with the present… that it may serve us better in the future.” (PNA and Argyll Geducos)