Why Edsa 1 Is Sacred & Edsa 2, Immoral: A Pictorial Comparison

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The Filipino Desaparecidos

Today, August 31, is the National Heroes Day for the Philippines. Yesterday was no less significant with the global observance of the International Day of Desaparecidos. Bulatlat produced a video (Philippines: Remembering the Disappeared) for the rather morbid celebration in honor of the "more than 200 Filipinos--mostly activists--[who] have disappeared" under the reign of the EDSA 2 Illegitimate.


Philippines: Remembering the Disappeared from Bulatlat on Vimeo.

The video presented some 40 or so "victims of the regime's brutal policy against critics, particularly the Left." The first human face of the contemporary Filipino desaparecidos under the Gloria Arroyo regime is Honorio Ayroso who disappeared February 2002 in Nueva Ecija. Not even the elderly seems spared, as evidenced by the case of Patricio Abalos, who was 61 years old when he went missing in March 2005 at Catbalogan, Samar.

Even women count among the desaparecidos. A matured face belongs to Gloria Soco who, by newspaper accounts, was not even a member of any left-wing group although she was a sister-in-law of a consultant of the National Democratic Front. Perhaps, most harrowing were the cases of Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan--promising young lasses from the University of the Philippines and who remain unaccounted for since being abducted in Hagonoy, Bulacan last June 26, 2006.


EDSA 2 Ironies for the Media & the Left

The penultimately featured desaparecido is Jonas Burgos, whose disappearance can be called an indirect case of press freedom irony, given that Burgos is no less the son of Joe Burgos, press freedom icon and founding publisher of the newspaper Malaya. It can be recalled that one of the ludicrous claims made back in January 2001 was the supposed absence or "death of democracy" under former President Joseph Estrada, who was actually too human-rights-conscious to disperse the irreverent mix of EDSA 2 conspirators and gullible mob.

The traditional media organizations went practically all out in support of the swift ouster of the democratically elected Estrada and the installation of Arroyo. As things unfolded, it proved to be an unwise, nay, stupid "People Power" exercise that gave birth to a government that turned out to be not only the most unpopular in Philippine history but one which, as the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines puts it, stands to leave "a legacy of bloodshed and repression, its acts of omission and commission nurturing the impunity with which the enemies of press freedom have operated."

Beautiful but dreadfully poignant Tagalog poetry graced the presentation. The Balagtasan-style ode to the missing stirs the patriotic and compassionate heart:

Hinahanap-hanap ka sa payapang dagat,
Sa bawa't kislot na aking maaninag;
Pinaghahanap ka sa tilamsik ng alat,
Sa bula, sa kislap ng bawat lagaslas.


Maging ang buhangin ay pinagtanungan,
Saan aabot ang dalampasigan?
Hapag kainan ba ang paghahandaan,
O kurona't ilaw ang iyong tahanan?


Hahanapin kita sa angil ng punlo,
Sa tinik ng gubat, silahis ng sulo;
Ipagtatanong ka sa libong kamao,
Sa kaway ng bandera't dagundong ng maso.


Hahanapin kita sa luntian bukirin,
Sa ngiti ng sanggol, sa ihip ng hangin;
Kung sa paglaya na ang iyong pagdating,
At wala ka roon ay hahanapin pa rin.


Hinahanap hanap ka, hanap ka.


--Adora Faye de Vera

Apparently, the victims of extra-judicial killings or disappearances under the Arroyo government have mostly been the left-leaning activists. Such is no surprising news because their side of the political spectrum has traditionally been the target of repression by a government who holds "special friendship" with its former colonial master and global nemesis of the communists, socialists and nationalists, the United States of America.

However, in another EDSA 2 irony, it is a fact that the repressive Arroyo government was a product of the 2001 power grab conspiracy that well included the Left. In a way, the Left who came to EDSA 2, or at least the leaders who forged the anti-Estrada coalition with the forces of Arroyo and ex-President Fidel Ramos, are indirectly responsible for the obtaining spate of disappearances and other forms of human rights violations. Arroyo, in a sense, is a big, big stone the leftists hit their own heads with. Still, that's no excuse not to contribute one's voice in the campaign against possible state-enforced disappearances or murders of Filipinos.

Pragmatic in perspective as I am, this article and the independently disseminated video will most probably be heed only by a few. To activate the gentler, just side of human nature of even not many a soul is good enough for me, though. Who knows if it can eventually lead to a government that refuses to be stained by the blood of Filipino desaparecidos, those of the leftist ones, at least.

________

References:

Video: Remembering the Disappeared. Bulatlat.com. 30 August 2009. http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2009/08/30/video-remembering-the-disappeared/

The Media Under Arroyo: A Legacy of Bloodshed and Repression. July 2007. National Union of Journalists of the Philippines Site. http://nujp.org/v4/2009/07/the-media-under-arroyo-a-legacy-of-bloodshed-and-repression/

Diatribe on Edsa 2--& why God gave us 'Arrobobastic' Gloria

(Arrobobastic - adj. 1. plunderously bombastic; 2. extremely ostentatious in lifestyle, beyond any reasonable SAL, or Statement of Assets and Liabilities. [See "Gloriastic is the new Imeldific" Philippine Commentary article & comments.] "Arrobobastic" is a neologism derived from the incumbent Philippine President's surname, the English word "bombastic," and "dorobou," a Japanese terms meaning "thief.")

Together, the $20,000 + $15,000 U.S. dinners of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo are not the Illegitimate's greatest sin, or alleged sin. Those immorally expensive meals certainly cannot be worse than the alleged-but-widely-believed "Hello Garci"-styled electoral fraud of 2004, nor the NBN-ZTE attempted deal, nor the August 2008 war in Mindanao brought about by the MOA-AD that is said to have been part of Gloria's bid for term extension. At worst, the dinners just constitute the icing on the cake of a sinful presidency baked in the undemocratic urn of Edsa 2.

EDSA 2 - blunder, coup, cover-up

Edsa 2 was simply a big, seditious lie hatched by opportunists in cahoots with those frustrated by the masa vote, a Machiavellian exercise, a "People Power" power grab that disrespected the sanctity of the ballot. A few tens of thousands of emotional gullibles, along with a few conspiratorial leaders, flushed down millions of Erap votes down the constitutional toilet big time. It could even be construed as discriminatory “People Power" coup based on its success in deposing Erap and the non-success of the counter-"People Power" in unseating Gloria four months later.



A more massive crowd that was Edsa 3 tried to undo the sacrilege of the pretender "People Power," but was not allowed. A sinful cardinal categorized them as the "great unwashed" not eligible for the holy Latin privilege of “vox populi, vox dei.” Masa "People Power" was simply 'devoid of political power,' so derided a UP political professor/analyst and Arroyo puppy.

Edsa 2 not only overturned the mechanisms of democracy relating to the presidency as instituted by the 1987. It also operated outside the constitutional framework when it went about the mandated guidelines for presidential succession. Of course, the court of Chief Justice Hilario Davide, the avowed street party-goer circa 2001, later legitimized Estrada's ouster by claiming the most mysterious legal doctrine of "Constructive Resignation," thereby ruling for Arroyo's installation. History, however, will always be reminded of the foresight of a 2001 Time magazine editorial on Edsa 2:

Again, therefore, whatever curious legal construction anyone may now attempt to put on the ouster of Estrada, he was ousted by a military coup, with the connivance of the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church, major business groups, and two former presidents.”

God's Purpose for Gloria

Back to the lustfully fine dinners, those nearly P2 M-worth meals fit for a royal power grabber have come to highlight the excesses of a leader brought forth by a grandiosely covered-up coup. When analyzed within the framework of a "divine plan"--which Filipinos are wont to adhere to, is it possible that God gave us the Illegitimate, a.k.a. Gloria Arrobo (says limited edition P100 bills), as a grim lesson never to repeat Edsa 2?

I recently partly concluded a months-long chat debate with a left-leaning Edsa 2 defender who bothered to engage me and who I bothered to reciprocate in my blog's Shoutbox. He finally gave in a bit, at least saying sorry for Gloria's installation and admitting that Erap wasn't given "a chance to defend himself by ousting him." The exchange made me realize that Gloria made it easier to prove the undemocratic fallacy of Edsa 2.

Had Arroyo been anything like Cory Aquino, the Edsa 2 forces would probably still be bragging about the "wisdom" of their move to unceremoniously unseat a duly elected leader. They would probably have convinced the world that even a power grab laced by a gullible mob is righteous.




Had the Arroyo presidency not suffered from the perception of being the "Most Corrupt" in history, owing to the almost endless litany of corruption scandals, the conspirators and gullibles of the fake "People Power" would still be gloating today.

If only her administration had been clean, not seemingly plunderous, and simple in lifestyle, not obviously ostentatious; the Edsa 2 coup would have been vindicated to a satisfying height. Perhaps, then, the cover-up of the Edsa 2 coup by the rich and the rapacious would have been sealed tight.

The excesses and misuse of power by the Edsa 2 President simply made it crystal-clearer for Filipinos that whenever due process of impeachment justice is denied a duly elected leader, the process of impeachment will thereafter be railroaded to deny the people the right to unseat a corrupt incumbent. Just perhaps, the Creator is telling us through Gloria that if the media is allowed to be used to demonize a popularly elected President, that same media will be used to perpetuate a mandate-less administration.

Gloria Arroyo could possible be God's way of drilling down on the fallacy of Edsa 2. Her "Hello Garci" episode could be a grim reminder that when the people's electoral will is subverted through the ouster of a President who held the numbers, the ballot becomes stripped of its sanctity and big-time cheating becomes fair game.

The realm of the divine is perhaps teaching our people that that the short-circuiting of the Constitution by any cult movement against a man popular with the masses deserves a punitive lesson like Gloria. "Lies," the heavens could be saying, "breed more lies and more sins."

Gloria and Erap both profess some divine providence: the power grabber claims "God put me here" while the ousted swears to some purpose from above. Who knows? What is clear is that Gloria's 'arrobobastic' presidency made it easier for the Filipinos and the world to see that "People Power II" was undemocratic and immoral. Sorry to the adamantly unapologetic Edsa 2 people, but your own choice made sure that you won't get away with it unscathed.

___________

References:

Bizarre Legal Doctrine. Manila Mail. http://www.manilamaildc.net/2009/07/22/bizarre-legal-doctrine/

Bowring, Philip. (Putsch). http://www.bowring.net/putsch.htm

Bowring, Philip. Sisters in Power. http://www.bowring.net/megloria.htm

Estrada, Joseph. "If This Can Be Done to Me, Who is Safe?" Time. 11 Feb. 2001. Time. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,99007,00.html

Lee Sr says Arroyo's takeover no boost for democracy. (AP). 23 January 2001. http://www.singapore-window.org/sw01/010123ap.htm

Mydan, Seth. "Expecting Praise, Filipinos Are Criticized for Ouster." The New York Times. 5 February 2001. http://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/05/world/05FILI.html?ex=1204174800&en=835b6565116a0dd1&ei=5070

Philippines Turmoil Highlights Class-Based Politics.' 1 May 2001. Time. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,108226,00.html

Pulse Asia's October 2007 Special Report's Additional Findings on Corruption-Related Issues (Most/Least Corrupt Philippine Presidents). http://pulseasia.com.ph/pulseasia/story.asp?id=632

Tordesillas, Ellen. Responsibilidad ni Arroyo. 31 August 2008. http://www.ellentordesillas.com/?p=2709

Photo Credits:

Bulatlat. http://www.bulatlat.com
Pulse Asia. http://www.pulseasia.com.ph/pulseasia/home.asp
Yahoo News. http://ph.yahoo.com/s/258495

The Stupidity of the EDSA 2 "People Power" Gullibles Relived

A running broadcast advertisement is reliving the stupidity of the EDSA 2 crowd conned into deposing the constitutionally-elected Joseph Estrada and installing Gloria Arroyo as successor. The anniversary advert running in Philippine television stations shows Arroyo swearing in as "acting President" amidst the seditious sea of mob humanity who flocked the streets of EDSA. What follows is a series of 'testimonies' of ordinary individuals who claim to have experienced economic gains after the revolutionary change in government. Amidst the consistent surveys showing the worst levels of hunger, worst perceptions of corruption and worsening personal and national quality of life and--all under Arroyo’s illicit reign--the political spot comes as almost a complete joke.


This laughable political advert is part of the "Arroyo administration's seventh anniversary celebration of the now infamous EDSA 2 putsch-cum-People Power that overthrew the popular Estrada, and which sent the Filipinos into seven years of polarization and political instability. It illustrates how Arroyo has used the power of media to seize power and even, to maintain her hold on it.

The traditional local media had largely hailed the 2001 coup as a "People Power" triumph over the supposed corruption of President Estrada. In fact, the mainstream broadcast and print Philippine media have served as an influential force in advancing the demonization and ouster of the sitting President and further, in deviously disguising before the Filipinos the constitutional anomaly that is EDSA 2.

Anti-Estrada Propaganda

The 'Estrada is Guilty' and 'long live EDSA 2!' propaganda campaigns participated in by most of the Philippine media actually began months prior to January 2001 during the drive to depose President Estrada. In what has been later exposed to be a well-orchestrated scheme by elitist elements that included the camp of then Vice-President Arroyo and former President Fidel Ramos, the local broadcast and print media played an instrumental role in demonizing Estrada and generating some public support for his ouster. Soon after Estrada decided to leave Malacanang to avoid any possible confrontation with his followers, the largest television stations, GMA-7 and ABS-CBN, ran for several weeks their 'victory' footages of the four-day revolution, acclaiming it as supposedly a victory for democracy in the land.


In contrast, the foreign media were in general agreement in their critical coverage of EDSA 2, describing the event as a power grab instead of as transition enabled by "People Power." Phil Bowring of the International Herald Tribune decried the impeachment walkout and the revolt, saying that "far from being a victory for democracy that is being claimed by leaders of the Anti-Estrada Movement such as Jaime Sin, the evolution of events has been a defeat for due process.” Time Magazine, in its February 19, 2001 issue, saw how “People power 2 was swift justice indeed--as in a lynching, it repudiated the very essence of due process enshrined in the constitution.”

Even foreign politicians and analysts shared the criticism of EDSA 2. Then Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew was quoted by The Straits Times on how he viewed "the change of power in the Philippines [as being] no boost for democracy because it was done outside the constitution." Wikipedia also quotes Hong Kong-based political analyst William Overholt who referred to EDSA 2 as "mob rule or mob rule as a cover for a well-planned coup."

In contrast to what the local media wanted the Filipinos to believe, EDSA 2 was no real showcase of "People Power" but rather, the fruition of a sophisticated and complex power grab conspiracy. Part of the planning and execution of the coup-in-disguise included the exercise of subtle psychological warfare by a major general who is a veteran in this game. In the midst of the Estrada impeachment, his predecessor Fidel Ramos--himself beleaguered by corruption charges--marched on the streets of EDSA in a move that seemed to (successfully) beckon the people to protest and follow suit.

People Power II Myths

Contrary to the lying claim propagated by the Arroyo administration and EDSA 2 stalwarts though media propaganda, the unseating of Estrada did not come about because of a well-intentioned, spontaneous popular revolt. An interview conducted by renowned author Nick Joaquin and which first appeared in the Philippine Graphic revealed that a power grab from Estrada had been planned long before the impeachment and that two of the key putschists were no other than Gloria Arroyo and her husband Mike Arroyo. With or without a popular component, the overthrow of the President with the highest plurality vote in history would have pushed through.

The defection of the military's top brass was the focus of the putschists' Plan A. This priority plan was what brought in the campaign to bring people to EDSA through media propaganda and centralized invitation by cellular texting. Arroyo's camp managed to convince then Chief-of-Staff Angelo Reyes to join, but on the condition that there will be a million-strong crowd in the streets of EDSA to help convince the service commanders to join.

Arroyo and Singson's camp also had a Plan B that included having elements of the military strike the initial blow by withdrawing from the government, to be followed by other groups such as the Philippine Military Academy graduates from Class '71, Class '72, etc. Moreover, they had a bloody "back-up strike force" given the orders to shoot against every place in Metro Manila and the provinces where Estrada forces will resist. It is herein seen that the unseen hand that directed the propaganda and political machinations against Estrada had a heartless determination to grab power. For all the illusions of the EDSA 2 people, it has become apparent that they had simply served as pawn to overthrow a very popularly elected leader. Worse, the EDSA "People Power" principle of a peaceful revolutionary change in government was in no way a consideration for the elitist elements who never respected the millions of masa (lower-class) votes received by Estrada.

Concededly, though, idealistic elements were present in the civilian support of EDSA 2. No less than members of the youth and the academic community lend some dignity to the rebellious occasion. It is even safe to state that the country's premiere university, the University of the Philippines, attended in majority force. It is just so sad that for all their intelligence and patriotic aspirations, the more honorable of the EDSA 2 civilians had been, well, had. Conned by political opportunists and elitist elements who envision democracy to work according to their convenience, they prejudged Estrada as guilty without the benefit of a fair and complete trial. The seemingly possessed EDSA 2 mob then dropped half their principles and acted in a Machiavellian fashion to taunt, jeer and malign Estrada. The climax came rather swiftly as the threat of the lynching mob--foolhardily ignorant of the putschists' machinations--was conveniently used to negotiate Estrada's departure from Malacanang. Aided by the seditious "party" animal, then Supreme Court Justice Hilario Davide, and failing to smell the odor of the wicked wolf in their midst, the pathetically jubilant mob then foolishly handed the Presidency to Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in a silver but tainted platter.

Revolution towards Greater Hunger and Corruption

It is most ironic that the 'Oust Estrada' campaign rode on the wings of anti-corruption and moral recovery promises but ended up driving the country into probably unprecedented post-war levels of misery, a corruption and immorality.



2007 was particularly a year of ignominy for Arroyo on several counts. Despite her proud but dubious claims of steering the country into economic stability, a Social Weather Station survey study shows that the level of total hunger hit its highest last year--the second time in her administration. Another 2007 survey, this time by Pulse Asia, betrays how Filipinos consider themselves and their countrymen worse off now than some years back ago.

It is in the area of morality, however, that Gloria Arroyo received the worst disgrace of her political life. The October 2007 Pulse Asia nationwide survey on corruption revealed how Filipinos view her as the "Most Corrupt President in Philippine History." The survey results prove particularly embarrassing not only for Arroyo but, perhaps, also for those responsible for her unconstitutional ascent into the Presidency because she even beat Guinness-holder Ferdinand Marcos for the inglorious title. Estrada, who has faced the politically-suspect Plunder charges and seven years of consistent demonizing by the Arroyo administration and elitist camps, placed only third in the list. What had made Gloria Arroyo top the "Most Corrupt" list is nothing else but a long litany of corruption issues that began soon after the EDSA 2 "People Power" gave her the reigns of illicit power.

Mea culpa

A number of personalities and participants of EDSA 2 have already admitted to the mistake, nay stupidity(?), of the Estrada ouster. Prominent among them is former President Corazon Aquino. While admission and penance may not necessarily bring back the constitutional order of the government, nor undo the defamation of Estrada, nor perhaps the lives of those who died by hunger or poverty-related suicide due to corruption of public funds, nor return the lost honor of the Supreme Court, it is a step in right direction. The zeal for change may sometimes override sobriety and foresight, and lead people to stupid decisions. Let EDSA 2, then, be a bitter blunder to rectify because otherwise, the nation as a whole will suffer worse.

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