BENIGNO AQUINO

Is the Filipino worth su�ering, or even dying, for? Is he not a coward who would readily yield to any colonizer, be he foreign or homegrown? Is a Filipino more comfortable under an authori-tarian leader because he does not want to be burdened with the freedom of choice?

FREEDOMThe memory is still fresh, as though it just happened yesterday. But it has been twenty-six years since Ninoy Aquino stepped out of the plane at the Manila International Airport which carried him from the United States, where he was stayed in exile for seven years.

Despite all the guards assigned for him (by of course, the Marcos gov-ernment), along with thousands of military and police personnel, armed bodyguards and even a bul-letproof vest, Ninoy was fatally shot in the head as he was escorted o� the airplane.

Still, Ninoy made a mark in Philip-pine politics on his own. At 22, he became the youngest municipal mayor, and the youngest vice-governor at the age of 27. Aside from becoming governor of Tarlac at age 29, he became the youngest elected senator in the history of the

But his successful political career also imperiled his life. He was the only member of the Liberal Party who made it to the senate – which was dominated by former President Ferdinand Marcos and his allies. Ninoy was a threat to the Marcoses, who continued to speak out about the dictator’s as well as Imelda Marcos’ excessive spending and plans for militarization, barely four years before Martial Law was actu-ally proclaimed.

Although many saw Ninoy as an unlikely contender for the highest o�ce, surveys showed that he was the number one choice of Filipinos. However, Marcos saw to it that he would remain in power by declaring Martial Law on September 21, 1972 and had Ninoy arrested on charges of murder, illegal possession of �re-arms and subversion, accusing him of being involved in the fateful Plaza Miranda bombing on August

WItHIN

SPOTLIGHT

LIBERATIONThrough his lenses

BENIGNO AQUINO

LIBERATIONThrough his lenses

The memory is still fresh, as though it just happened yester-day. But it has been twenty-six years since Ninoy Aquino stepped out of the plane at the Manila International Airport which carried him from the United States, where he was stayed in exile for seven years.

Despite all the guards assigned for him (by of course, the Marcos government), along with thou-sands of military and police per-sonnel, armed bodyguards and even a bulletproof vest, Ninoy was fatally shot in the head as he was escorted o� the airplane.

Still, Ninoy made a mark in Phil-ippine politics on his own. At 22, he became the youngest munici-pal mayor, and the youngest vice-governor at the age of 27. Aside from becoming governor of Tarlac at age 29, he became the youngest elected senator in the history of the Philippines at the age of 34.

But his successful political career also imperiled his life. He was the only member of the Liberal Party who made it to the senate – which was dominated by former Presi-dent Ferdinand Marcos and his allies. Ninoy was a threat to the

the Marcoses, who continued to speak out about the dictator’s as well as Imelda Marcos’ excessive spending and plans for militari-zation, barely four years before Martial Law was actually pro-claimed.

Although many saw Ninoy as an unlikely contender for the high-est o�ce, surveys showed that he was the number one choice of Filipinos. However, Marcos saw to it that he would remain in power by declaring Martial Law on September 21, 1972 and had Ninoy arrested on charges of murder, illegal possession of �re

arms and subversion, accusing him of being involved in the fate-ful Plaza Miranda bombing on August 1971.

Although unjustly accused, Ninoy went through the same or-deals like any prisoner – he faced a military tribunal. He was found guilty by the government-controlled military commission and was sentenced by �ring squad.He spent almost eight years in solitary con�nement. After su�ering two heart attacks, he decided to go on exile in the United States to undergo a coro-nary bypass. While in the US

Is the Filipino worth su�ering, or even dying, for? Is he not a coward who would readily yield to any colonizer, be he foreign or homegrown?

SPOTLIGHT

By Ryan Salonga