Today, we not only remember, but also rage in lucidity.
On the 50th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law in the Philippines, we mark the continuing struggle of the Filipino people against neoliberalism and state repression.
And struggle we must, not just against the revisionism of our nation’s past but also against the fascist legacies of both Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and Rodrigo Duterte, which persist under Marcos Jr.’s leadership.
Early in his presidency, Marcos Jr. has shown that he is no different from his father and predecessor in kowtowing to imperialist biddings and enacting neoliberal policies that further impoverish the Filipino people.
Of grave concern is our country’s food security. Amid a looming food crisis, Marcos Jr., who is functioning as the country’s agricultural department at his behest, has resorted to importation and reduced budgets for vital support services.
Instead of lowering the retail price of rice to PHP 20 (USD 0.35) a kilo, as he pledged in the last elections, the farm gate price of rice is presently at an all-time low owing to his institutional support to rice importers, many of whom are his financiers.
Despite his posturing as an advocate of food self-sufficiency, Marcos is promoting the same old neoliberal policies in what he calls “modern and resilient agriculture.” Instead of helping local farmers and increasing domestic output, more of the taxpayers’ money will be flowing to the bottom lines of big corporations.
All the while, farmers and fisherfolk continue to suffer from landlessness, dire poverty, and hunger. Even worse, the peasant killings and human rights crimes that marked his father’s dictatorship and his predecessor’s rule continue unabated.
The harassment of rural communities, illegal arrests and disappearances of activists and peasant advocates, and extrajudicial killings, especially of farmers, have carried on under the current administration. Public opinion is being swayed in support of these offensives by the widespread use of misinformation and terror labeling.
How dare Marcos Jr. talk about peace in the 77th UN General Assembly for the country’s bid for a seat in the UN Security Council when it cannot even face the ICC—even call for a halt to its investigation of Duterte’s drug war.
In the face of these prevailing injustices and impunity, we continue to struggle. We did so against the regimes of Marcos Sr. and Duterte, and we are doing so against the present-day US-Marcos regime.
Never again, never forget!
