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108-515: Presidency Family Unexplained wealth Legacy Related [REDACTED] During the administration of former Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos (1965–1986) select businesses were favored and patronized by Marcos, receiving financial support, sole patronage, tax exemptions, and control over entire industries rendering these businesses as monopolies . Friends and relatives of Marcos acquired staggering wealth and economic power due to special favors and privileges extended by

216-518: A Marcos crony known for his tobacco monopoly, also had dealings with agriculture and logging. Disini had timber and pulpwood operations in Abra and Kalinga-Apayao in Northern Luzon. Hundreds of families and indigenous groups were evicted for the benefit of his company, backed by presidential degrees. In 1973, Disini's company, Cellophil Resources Corporation (popularly known simply as Cellophil),

324-546: A cautious borrowing policy in the 1970s. Amid high oil prices, high interest rates, capital flight, and falling export prices of sugar and coconut, the Philippine government borrowed a significant amount of foreign debt in the early 1980s. The country's total external debt rose from US$ 2.3 billion in 1970 to US$ 26.2 billion in 1985. Marcos' critics charged that policies have become debt-driven, along with corruption and plunder of public funds by Marcos and his cronies. This held

432-630: A coup attempt against the Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos . However, the plot was soon discovered, and Marcos ordered Enrile and his supporters to be arrested. Fearful of being overcome by Marcos' forces, Enrile sought help from then-AFP Vice Chief of Staff Lt. Gen Fidel Ramos , who was also the chief of the Philippine Constabulary (now the Philippine National Police). Ramos agreed and withdrew his support for

540-559: A coup d'etat, then declare martial law or suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus – and arrest all including the legal cadres. Right now I am inclined towards the latter. 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

648-432: A downpayment of only Php 10,000 a ridiculously low amount for the purchase of a national power utility worth $ 20 million. However, Romualdez did not hold his end of the bargain and Eugenio Jr continued to languish in prison. When Lopez Sr. died of cancer in 1975, his son was still in jail and only later managed to escape. Romualdez managed to create a loophole in the terms of the agreement to prevent further payments. MERALCO

756-493: A feeding program for 90,000 of them, hoping to save the worst cases." 1985 infant death statistics at Bacolod City Hospital rose 67 percent, and Negros' infant mortality rose to nearly double the national average, with most of the deaths attributed to malnutrition. Locally, social tensions were so high that the Bishop of Bacolod, Antonio Fortich described the conditions on the island as a "social volcano" ready to explode. This

864-402: A lot of media and institutional attention around the world. Among the most iconic images of the famine was Kim Komenich 's photograph of a boy named Joel Abong , which was part of the coverage by journalist Inday Espina-Varona , who wrote about the last days of Abong's life, before he succumbed to pneumonia, tuberculosis, and malnutrition. Alerted about the crisis by shocking media coverage,

972-508: A low price of $ 19.75 per picul, then sold it to the United States for $ 69.25. Their initial profits amounted to $ 700 million. Hacienderos (agricultural land owners) argued that Philex was nothing more than a trading agent and demanded that profits from international sales should be given to them. However, before the issue could be properly addressed, the international price of sugar crashed, and Philex went bankrupt . The crash surprised

1080-414: A means of facilitating repression which they argued would hasten revolution." On the night of September 22, 1972, Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile was allegedly ambushed while on his way home. The assassination attempt was widely believed to have been staged; Enrile himself admitted to the assassination attempt to have been staged but he would later retract his claim. The Plaza Miranda bombing ,

1188-621: A million sacadas and their families in Negros suffered in what would later become known as the 1985 "Negros Famine." One of the factors that worsened the situation for the people of Negros was the overreliance on sugar as virtually the island's only agricultural crop ( monoculture ), with the Journal of the Senate of the Philippines noting that: "practically the entire agricultural land of

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1296-633: A million sacadas and their families suffered through the 1985 Negros famine . Many labor organizations and movements were established, with some protests ending in violence and murder. In 1981, a group of planters and workers from Negros filed a class-action suit in the Supreme Court against the Philsucom and NASUTRA. They demanded the end of sales of sugar crops without planters' consent, and annual existing long-term export contracts. They contended that they are being deprived of earnings because

1404-595: A multisectoral effort to mitigate the worst effects of the famine was launched. International relief agencies, local non-governmental organizations, and the Catholic Church conducted feeding programs, mobilized relief drives, and otherwise pitched in to help. The immediate impacts of the Negros famine were still being felt when Marcos was ousted by the People Power Revolution in 1986. Efforts to address hunger and malnutrition continued through

1512-592: A presidential assistant who owned Twin Peaks Corp., Fortuna Marcos-Barba, the president's sister, and Alfonso Lim, who was given 7 logging concessions in Northern Luzon with a land area of more than 600,000 hectares. This is five times the constitutional limit of a hundred thousand hectares of logging for any one family. Lim had logging and wood-based companies in Cagayan. His strong political ties allowed him to avoid payment of license fees amounting to $ 123,000 by 1986,

1620-732: A price dictated by the Cellophil, and those refused had their crops bulldozed and their water supply cut off. Cellophil also threatened to acquire a presidential decree to confiscate the lands if the farmers refused to comply. The Tinggians organized to prepare to fight for their rights and their way of life. The government responded by imposing complete militarization in areas with logging activities. The Philippine Constabulary banned community meetings, declared that opposition to Cellophil activities were "anti-government" and "subversive", and forced people to work on community roads and bridges without pay. They were offered bribes to cease their protests, yet

1728-491: A result, Marcos suspended the writ of habeas corpus to arrest those behind the attack. He rounded up supposed suspects and other undesirables to eliminate rivals in the Liberal Party. Marcos accused the communist movement as the perpetrators of the bombing, and responded by suspending the writ of habeas corpus. Declassified documents from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency also implicate Marcos in at least one of

1836-517: A small radio station that transformed into the Kanlaon Broadcasting System (KBS) (now Radio Philippines Network ) that consisted of three television stations, 15 radio stations and a national newspaper called Philippines Daily Express . In 1972, news and media outlets were forced to cease operations and their facilities were taken over by the military. However, Benedicto was allowed to continue his broadcasts, as they served as

1944-708: A treatment in contrast to his competitors. For example, the Dupaya family from Cagayan claimed that the Philippine Constabulary halted their logging operators, and they were threatened by 'the Enrile people' referring to former Secretary of Defense Juan Ponce Enrile . The government also extended military support to Alfonso Lim, with one of his companies enlisting 150 soldiers and 50 security guards. The Philippine Military trained draftees, and Lim paid for their salaries and provided their weapons. Herminio Disini,

2052-552: Is Fortune Tobacco Corporation, which was one of the Philippines' largest cigarette makers. Because of his friendship with Marcos, Fortune Tobacco Corporation was given tax, customs, financing and regulatory breaks that allowed his business to prosper as a domestic monopoly. Tan also wrote a cigarette tax code that Marcos signed into law. Despite big tax breaks, Tan still allegedly falsified internal revenue stamps to use for his cigarette packs and smuggled cigarettes to evade taxes. Tan has refused to disclose financial data on his companies to

2160-551: Is an important industry in the Philippines, being one of the major crop exports since the Spanish colonial era . During the early years of the Marcos administration it was responsible for 27% of the country's total dollar earnings. Roberto Benedicto , Marcos' fraternity brother and associate, monopolized the Philippine sugar industry beginning in 1974, earning the name "Sugar King". The international price of sugar steadily rose in

2268-547: Is now known as the Escalante Massacre . One of the most infamous forms of graft and corruption of the Marcos administration was the Coco Levy Fund , controlled by Eduardo 'Danding' Cojuangco and Juan Ponce Enrile . The fund was originally drafted in 1971, which required taxing every kilo of copra sold, supposedly for shares of stocks that will support the coconut farmers as the industry develops. However,

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2376-540: Is to abort the subversive plan now by the sudden arrest of the plotters. But this would not be accepted by the people. Nor could we get the Huks (Communists), their legal cadres and support. Nor the MIM (Maoist International Movement) and other subversive [or front] organizations, nor those underground. We could allow the situation to develop naturally then after massive terrorism, wanton killings and an attempt at my assassination and

2484-736: 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 opposition boycotted the June 16, 1981, presidential election , which pitted Marcos and his Kilusang Bagong Lipunan party against retired Gen. Alejo Santos of

2592-581: The 1969 Philippine balance of payments crisis . The Marcos administration ran to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for help, and the IMF offered a debt restructuring deal. New policies, including a greater emphasis on exports and the relaxation of controls of the peso, were put in place. The peso was allowed to float to a lower market value, resulting in drastic inflation, and social unrest. In February 1971, student activists took over

2700-657: 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 partial 70% tally of the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections , an accredited poll watcher, said Aquino won with 7,835,070 votes to Marcos's 7,053,068. The 1986 Philippine presidential election

2808-582: The Communist Party of the Philippines founded by Jose Maria Sison . KM members protested in front of Congress, throwing a coffin, a stuffed alligator, and stones at Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos after his State of the Nation Address . At the presidential palace, activists rammed the gate with a fire truck and once the gate broke and gave way, the activists charged into the palace grounds tossing rocks, pillboxes and Molotov cocktails. In front of

2916-620: The Manila Police District for their "exemplary behavior and courage" and protecting the First Couple long after they had left. The death of the activists was seized by the Lopez controlled Manila Times and Manila Chronicle, blaming Marcos and added fire to the weekly protests. Students declared a week-long boycott of classes and instead met to organize protest rallies. Rumors of a coup d'état were also brewing. A report of

3024-540: 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

3132-505: The National Sugar Trading Corporation (NASUTRA) which were both controlled by Marcos crony Roberto Benedicto . However, the international price of sugar eventually dropped in a market crash , dramatically hurting the livelihood of poor farmers. The NASUTRA monopoly forced many sugar planters into bankruptcy or deep in debt . In 1984, over 190,000 sugar workers lost their livelihood, and about

3240-577: The Philippines' independence in 1946, Ferdinand Marcos became the Philippines tenth president. Relying on foreign debt to fund an ambitious slate of programs and projects, Marcos became popular enough to become the first Philippine post-war president to win a second term as president. This second term, however, was marked by social unrest when his debt-driven spending and budget made the Philippine economy vulnerable to dramatic downturns in

3348-562: The global economy . Before the end of his second and last allowed term under the Constitution of the Philippines , Marcos held on to power by declaring martial law in 1972, and replacing the Constitution with a new one in 1973. Although he formally lifted martial law almost a decade later in 1981, Marcos still hold on to his martial law powers, remaining a dictator until he was ousted by the 1986 People Power Revolution . By

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3456-465: The 1960s at the time Marcos took the presidency to 59% when he was removed from power. The period is sometimes described as a golden age for the country's economy by historical distortionists . By the period's end, the country was experiencing a debt crisis, extreme poverty, and severe underemployment. On the island of Negros , which suffered what came to be called the Negros famine , one-fifth of

3564-490: The 1969 election. Marcos even went to the U.S. embassy to dispel rumors that the U.S. embassy is supporting a coup d'état which the opposition, the Liberal Party of the Philippines , was spreading. While the report obtained by the New York Times speculated that story could be used by Marcos to justify martial law, as early as December 1969 in a message from the U.S. ambassador to the U.S. assistant secretary of state,

3672-518: The 1970s, which led to indiscriminate hoarding from the local market. Sugar traders preferred to sell sugar overseas rather than locally, where prices were regulated by the government. The Marcos administration created the Philippine Exchange Co. (Philex), a government entity that takes charge of all international trading of sugar. Philex solely took charge of exporting US and foreign-bound sugar. They bought locally manufactured sugar at

3780-506: The 1983–1984 recession. The recession was triggered largely by political instability following the assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr. , high global interest rates, the severe global economic recession , and a significant increase in global oil price , the latter three of which affected all indebted countries in Latin America and Europe, and the Philippines was not exempted. Economists noted that poverty incidence grew from 41% in

3888-547: The Armed Forces Movement Others who withdrew support during the People Power revolution Opposition Political parties Presidency of Ferdinand Marcos Presidency Family Unexplained wealth Legacy Related [REDACTED] The history of the Philippines , from 1965 to 1986, covers the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos . The Marcos era includes

3996-405: 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 some exercise of totalitarian powers, the latter must be constitutionally allowed, thereby eliminating the need to proclaim martial law and its concomitants, principally the assertion by

4104-663: The Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines and declared it a free commune . Protests during the First Quarter Storm in 1970 resulted in clashes and violent dispersals by the national police. During the First Quarter Storm in 1970, the line between leftist activists and communists became increasingly blurred, as a significant number of Kabataang Makabayan (KM) advanced activists joined

4212-633: The Ilocos region, except for Cellophil. Marcos also issued PD 410, declaring that ancestral lands should be cultivated and set aside for the exclusive use of indigenous peoples. However, the province of Abra was excluded from the decree, conveniently because Disini had his logging concessions there. This raised fears among the Tinggians , the indigenous group whose ancestral land now being destroyed by Disini's loggers. The Tinggians petitioned Marcos for inclusion but they were snubbed. Disini's companies victimized

4320-500: The Marcos administration, 2 million damaged beyond the point of recovery. The sheer scale of this mass deforestation is equal to 81% of the size of the island of Mindanao. Logs were exported to Korea, Taiwan, and Japan, countries who also had natural forests but chose to preserve them. In the 1970s, over 200 timber licensing agreements (TLA) were granted, mostly to the President's allies and relatives. This number slowly decreased after

4428-443: The Marcos administration, with the President granting several Letters of Instruction (LOIs) for Benedicto's benefit. In 1977, Marcos issued LOI 640 to allow Banahaw Broadcasting Corporation , one of Benedicto's companies, to import $ 3 million worth of TV transmission equipment and facilities, without paying taxes or tariffs. The LOI also allowed tax-free importation of $ 15 million worth of 12-inch black and white television sets for

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4536-555: The Marcos dictatorship, allowing the forests to recover. Many of these agreements violated the maximum 100,000 hectare land area for logging, and between 1960 and 1970, 300,000 hectares of forests were being destroyed. Concessionaires were also allowed to cut naturally-grown trees in rainforests, a practice that is frowned upon due to the lack of accountability. The trees were not planted by the loggers, and thus were not accountable to replace them. This all took place despite Marcos' pronouncements as president, where he often wrote speeches on

4644-497: The Marcos government, who had been storing hoards and hoards of sugar in warehouses. When Philex decided to resume sale in 1975, the sugar had already deteriorated, production had to be cut, and workers lost jobs. After the flop of Philex, Marcos decided to have tighter control of the industry and established the Philippine Sugar Commission (Philsucom). Philsucom had blanket authority over the industry, given

4752-515: The Marcoses controlled the majority of the industries in the Philippines. In a 1988 interview, she stated, "We practically own everything in the Philippines—from electricity, telecommunications, airline, banking, beer and tobacco, newspaper publishing, television stations, shipping, oil and mining, hotels and beach resorts, down to coconut milling, small farms, real estate and insurance." Sugar

4860-508: The Meralco Foundation, a newly formed corporation by Romualdez. He also told Lopez that his son Eugenio Jr. , who was charged with attempting to assassinate Marcos, would be released from jail, if he agreed to Romualdez's terms. Critics believed that the 'assassination attempt' was a set-up to implicate members of rich families. The elder Lopez conceded and turned over the family's shares to Kokoy. Lopez sold Meralco to Romualdez for

4968-620: The PD 755, which authorized the Philippine Coconut Authority to use the funds to "draw and utilize the levy collections to pay for the financial commitments" connected to UCPB. PD 755 legitimized what Enrile and Cojuangco had been doing. More help from Marcos came with the Central Bank authorization for UCPB to become a universal bank. It meant UCPB was allowed to venture into other non-coconut oriented activities, and that

5076-417: The Philippine government. After Marcos was ousted and exiled to Hawaii in 1986, Tan wrote an open letter to President Corazon Aquino , stating that "We can proudly say that we have never depended on dole-outs, government assistance of monopoly protection throughout our history".   Roberto Benedicto , also known for his sugar monopoly, had a media and telecommunications empire in the Philippines. He owned

5184-648: The Philippines College of Law, President Marcos declared his intention to lift martial law by the end of January 1981. 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

5292-495: The Philippines pre-dates Spanish colonization, being one of the original major crops of the Austronesian peoples , which includes Filipinos. It was traditionally used for making various native jaggery products (collectively called panutsa , like pakombuk , sangkaka and bagkat bao ) used in cooking. It was also widely used to make traditional wines like palek , byais , basi , intus , and pangasi , and its juice

5400-441: The Philippines' gross domestic product (GDP) quadrupled from $ 8 billion in 1972 to $ 32.45 billion in 1980, for an inflation-adjusted average growth rate of 6% per year. Indeed, according to the U.S.-based Heritage Foundation, the Philippines enjoyed its best economic development since 1945 between 1972 and 1980. The economy grew amidst the two severe global oil shocks following the 1973 oil crisis and 1979 energy crisis – oil price

5508-451: The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee said that shortly after the 1969 Philippine presidential election , a group composed mostly of retired colonels and generals organized a revolutionary junta to first discredit President Marcos and then kill him. As described in a document given to the committee by Philippine Government official, key figures in the plot were Vice President Fernando Lopez and Sergio Osmeña Jr. , whom Marcos defeated in

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5616-585: The U.S. ambassador said that most of the talk about revolution and even assassination has been coming from the defeated opposition, of which Adevoso (of the Liberal Party) is a leading activist. He also said that the information he has on the assassination plans are 'hard' or well-sourced and he has to make sure that it reached President Marcos. In light of the crisis, Marcos wrote an entry in his diary in January 1970: I have several options. One of them

5724-408: The U.S. embassy, protesters vandalized, burned, and damaged the embassy lobby resulting in a strong protest from the U.S. ambassador. The KM protests ranged from 50,000 to 100,000 in number per weekly mass action. In the aftermath of the January 1970 riots, at least two activists were confirmed dead and several were injured by the police. The mayor of Manila at the time, Antonio Villegas , commended

5832-604: 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,

5940-424: The administration. While Marcos associates enjoyed government bailout even during the decline of their firms, other businesses suffered high taxes, sanctions, and other unjust treatments that forced them to close up, or to sell their shares. The majority of monopolies linked to Ferdinand Marcos are managed by his close associates , also regarded as cronies by critics. Former First Lady Imelda Marcos insinuated that

6048-512: The alleged ambush of Enrile, and the MV Karagatan landing were among the incidents used to justify the imposition of martial law. The alleged assassination attempt of Enrile together with the general citizen disquiet, were used by Marcos as reasons to issue Presidential Proclamation No. 1081, proclaiming a state of martial law in the Philippines on September 21. Facing further criticism, Marcos claimed that his declaration of Martial Law

6156-470: The arrest of opposition leaders and militant activists, including his staunchest critics Senators Benigno Aquino Jr. and Jose W. Diokno , virtually turning the Philippines into a totalitarian dictatorship with Marcos. 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 allowed to go into exile. As martial law went on for

6264-410: The bank was allowed to "invest funds collected from farmers in a private corporation which will pool and coordinate the resources of the farmers and the coconut oil millers in buying, milling, and marketing copra and its by-products". Later, Marcos granted PD 1468, which declared the money as private and prevented any government audit. Cojuangco acquired San Miguel Corporation (SMC) with the funds from

6372-487: The buying price of sugar is far too low. In 1985, protesters in Negros Occidental gathered in the town center to mark the 13th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law , and to remember its damages in their town and livelihood. The crowd was an estimated 5000 sugar workers, farmers, students and church activists. The protesters were gunned down by paramilitary forces, killing around 20-30 people. This

6480-488: The children under six were seriously malnourished. From the election of Marcos 1965 to the overthrowing of Marcos' regime in 1986, around 300,000 Filipinos emigrated out of the Philippines to the United States. The Philippines under martial law suffered from massive and uncontrolled corruption . Some estimates, including that by the World Bank, put the Marcos family's stolen wealth at US$ 10 billion. Plunder

6588-541: The collaboration of the new Philippine government, the Catholic Church, and the international community. In the long term, however, the administration of President Corazon Aquino sought to redistribute land through the new Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law . It also put policies in place to diversify agricultural production on the island by polyculture . Under a "60-30-10 plan," 60% of Negros' agricultural lands would continue to be allocated to sugar, while 30%

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6696-467: The country under a debt-servicing crisis which is expected to be fixed by only 2025. Critics have pointed out an elusive state of the country's development as the period is marred by a sharp devaluing of the Philippine Peso from 3.9 to 20.53. The overall economy experienced a slower growth GDP per capita, lower wage conditions and higher unemployment especially towards the end of Marcos' term after

6804-407: The coup plotters, in the hope of preventing Marcos from annihilating them. At around the same time, Ramos and Enrile contacted the highly influential Archbishop of Manila, Cardinal Jaime Sin to ask for help. Cardinal Sin went on radio and encouraged people on the capital to likewise go to EDSA to support Ramos and Enrile, and crowds, already preparing to conduct election protests, trooped en masse to

6912-476: The deadly series of bombings in 1971. For historian Joseph Scalice, he argued that while the Marcos government was allied with the Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas (PKP) in carrying out bombings in the early 1970s, "the evidence of history now overwhelmingly suggests that the Communist Party of the Philippines , despite being allied with the Liberal Party, was responsible for this bombing, seeing it as

7020-452: 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." After the lifting of martial law, power remained concentrated with Marcos. One scholar noted how Marcos retained "all martial law decrees, orders, and law-making powers", including powers that allowed him to jail political opponents. The martial law era under Marcos

7128-664: The farmers never received returns promised to them by the Cocofed and Philippine Coconut Authority , which were the organizations that oversaw the levy collecting and supposedly represented the interests of the farmers. The total collected fund is an estimated amount of P100 billion to P150 billion.   Enrile and Cojuangco used the taxes collected to invest in and acquire businesses. Some of these included United Coconut Planters Bank and San Miguel Corporation .  Cojuangco bought UCPB and became its president. Cojuangco received assistance from Marcos in purchasing UCPB. Marcos granted

7236-547: The final years of the Third Republic (1965–1972), the Philippines under martial law (1972–1981), and the majority of the Fourth Republic (1981–1986). By the end of the Marcos dictatorial era, the country was experiencing a debt crisis, extreme poverty , and severe underemployment. In 1965, Ferdinand Marcos won the presidential election and became the 10th president of the Philippines . His first term

7344-664: The government, siding with Enrile. Their respective forces barricaded themselves in Camp Crame and Camp Aguinaldo which were near each other on either side of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) in Quezon City . Despite their combined forces, however, Enrile and Ramos were essentially trapped in the camps, and in the words of historian Vicente L. Rafael , "became sitting ducks for Ferdinand Marcos' loyalist forces." A small contingent of Aquino supporters, led by her brother in law Butz Aquino , went to EDSA to express support

7452-500: The importance of natural resources as a national investment, particularly of forests and logging. He spoke of forest resources as directly related the welfare of the people and the environment, denounced illegal loggers who "push back our tribal forest settlers to the innermost recesses of our forest lands", and imposed heavy penalties on offenders. Despite his anti-illegal logging rhetoric, Marcos himself handed over numerous concessions to his close associates. Among them were Juan Tavera,

7560-463: The increase in tariffs of the raw materials of Disini's main competitor, Filtrona Philippines Inc. The decree increased the tariffs from 10% to 100%, claiming that its aim was to ensure "fair competition in the local cigarette industry". Filtrona consequently ran out of business, while Disini's company remained exempt from the tax increase. Disini controlled 75% of the market for manufacture and distribution of tobacco filters. After establishing his name in

7668-619: The indigenous groups dwelling in his logging area. The Tinggians reported seeing roving jeeps of guards, and that their rice fields, pasture lands, and communal forests were usurped. Cellophil forcibly took 55 hectares of agricultural land in Northern Luzon, affecting not only the Tingguians but also the Kalingas and the Bontocs . Cellophil forced the farmers to sell their lands. In Gaddani, Tayum, farmers were forced to sell their lands at

7776-605: The industry by manipulating trading and pricing policy, indiscriminate stealing from industry inventories, control over mills, and ordering military to massacre workers who protested against unfair working conditions. Benedicto controlled the market by using methods he practiced in Philex, such as: Their monopoly of the sugar industry rippled adverse effects, hurting the livelihoods of poor farmers. Philsucom-NASUTRA forced many sugar planters into bankruptcy or deep in debt. In 1984, over 190,000 sugar workers lost their livelihood, and about

7884-437: The industry, Disini organized Techosphere Manufacturers and Recyclers Inc., which produced cigarette filters and pipe mixtures. As he began taking over manufacturing cigarettes and filters, Marcos issued PD 1858, which lowered import duties on the acetate tow Disini imported from 20% to 10%. Lucio Tan , now one of Asia's richest businessmen, was also considered one of the cronies of Ferdinand Marcos . One of his main companies

7992-512: The largest and most extensive English daily during the Marcos administration. Some of its successes include accounting for almost half of the total advertisements of the top seven dailies. Menzi's publishing empire consisted of Panorama , the Sunday magazine of the Bulletin, the daily Tempo , Balita , WHO , Liwayway , Bisaya , Banawag , and Song Cavalcade and Top Melodies magazines. Menzi

8100-453: The levy. SMC is one of the oldest and largest beer, food, packaging and livestock conglomerate in the Philippines. President Marcos gave favors to SMC once Cojuangco became its head. Taxes were raised for liquor and cigarettes in January 1986, but excise taxes on beer went down. Beer is one of the main products of SMC, which helped the corporation save as much as $ 40 million that year. Over 8 million hectares of forest trees were wiped out during

8208-620: The light of events that would happen in the following decade. During the Vietnam War , Marcos strongly opposed sending military forces to Vietnam. Under intense pressure from US President Lyndon Johnson , Marcos sent a Filipino noncombatant military force to the Republic of Vietnam in 1966, under the Philippine Civic Action Group (PHILCAG). As the war was proving to be unpopular among Filipinos, Marcos ordered

8316-470: The mid-1800s. The sugar products were exported to the United States, England, Australia and Spain. The industry continued to grow through the Philippines' colonial period and allowed a small group of Filipino families to accumulate wealth and status, and become part of the Philippines' social elite . In 1965, two decades after the end of the Second World War and the subsequent recognition of

8424-409: 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. In a speech before his fellow alumni of the University of

8532-509: The next five years. It also allowed Banahaw to commission a local company to assemble the television sets, justifying that these sets would be sold to total areas with lower prices. The LOI then instructed government agencies to market the TV sets. The ministries of Public Information, National Defense, Education and Culture, were instructed to use the sets for their public information and educational projects. In 1982, Marcos issued LOI 640-A, to extend

8640-446: The next nine years, the excesses committed by the military increased. In total, there were 3,257 extrajudicial killings , 35,000 individual tortures, and 70,000 were incarcerated. It is also reported that 737 Filipinos disappeared between 1975 and 1985. Though it was claimed 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 though it

8748-692: The power to "act as the single agency engaged in the buying and selling of sugar". Additionally, the Presidential Degree 1192 provided Philsucom: The presidential degree allowed Philsucom to have complete monopoly of the sugar industry in the Philippines. It then created a trading arm, the National Sugar Trading Corporation (NASUTRA), which was exclusively responsible for domestic and international sugar trading.   Roberto Benedicto headed both Philsucom and NASUTRA. Benedicto and his associates consistently milked

8856-466: The press, etc. In a word, the martial law regime was anathema to no small portion of the populace. 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, giving the President emergency power in case of a threat or imminence to issue necessary decrees, orders which shall be part of law of the land, was born in

8964-507: The province was devoted to sugarcane farms primarily in response to the lure of easy money and great profits from sugar which was then enjoying a privileged position in the world market." By 1985, a survey by the National Nutrition Council of the Philippines estimated that about 350,000 children – 40 percent of Negros Occidental residents under the age of 14 – were suffering from malnutrition. Author John Silva, who

9072-775: The publication take on a new name. Menzi presented several nameplates and logos to the President, and Marcos chose Bulletin Today , as it 'depicts the New Society'. Rolando Gapud, a financial advisor of Marcos, arranged the take over of Menzi's corporations. They were able to take over Menzi's business interests in three stages: Through these steps, Marcos acquired 75% of Bulletin Publishing Corporation and 92% of Liwayway Publishing Corporation. Business sector opposition Political sector opposition Religious sector opposition Student activists Reform

9180-505: The richest families in the country. The Lopez family owned 33% shares of the MERALCO, the rest of the shares being owned by the public. To force Lopez to give up his shares, the Marcos government reduced the authorized utility rate increase from 36.5% to 20.9%, forcing MERALCO to incur losses. Benjamin "Kokoy" Romualdez , a brother of First Lady Imelda Marcos , controlled this transaction and forced Lopez to transfer his shares in MERALCO to

9288-429: The scope and duration of the earlier order. The new instruction directed government ministries to distribute Benedicto's television sets in the countryside areas "on matters pertaining to peace and order". Due to the tax breaks, Benedicto was all to sell 12-inch black and white television sets cheaper than the competitors who had to pay taxes. The Consumer Electronic Products Manufacturers Association (CEPMA) complained that

9396-632: The shares were reverted to the original owners. The Lopezes were able to recover some of their shares between 1986 and 1991, owning 16% of the company. Monopolization of the tobacco industry in the Philippines was another evidence of Marcos' favors to his relatives and associates. Herminio Disini was Marcos' golfing partner and was married to Dr. Paciencia Escolin, Imelda Marcos ' first cousin and personal physician. Disini organized Philippine Tobacco Filters Corp (PFTC) in 1970, supplemented by 30% investment by Baumgartner Papiers of Switzerland. To aid his business, Marcos issued Presidential Decree 750 which ordered

9504-666: The stretch of EDSA between the two camps. This evolved in the largely peaceful 1986 EDSA Revolution , which ended with Marcos going into exile in Hawaii and Corazon Aquino becoming 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 . Negros famine The cultivation of sugarcane, specifically Saccharum sinense , in

9612-438: The television sets meant for rural areas were being sold in Manila, greatly affecting their market. One of the biggest players in the publishing industry in post-war Philippines was Hans Menzi, a Brigadier General in the air force.  He owned many businesses in agricultural and publishing sector. During Marcos' first presidential term, Menzi served as his military aide. Menzi was the publisher of Manila Daily Bulletin ,

9720-453: The time Ferdinand Marcos' second term began, sugar had become a critical Philippine export, responsible for 27% of the country's total dollar earnings . With international sugar prices rising rapidly through the early 1970s, Marcos decided to put domestic and international sugar trading under government control, first through the Philippine Exchange Co. (Philex), and later through the Philippine Sugar Commission (Philsucom) and its trading arm,

9828-472: The tribes continued. Affected tribes called for a peace pact and drafted a resolution to Marcos, informing the President of Cellophil's refusal of a fair dialogue and their military harassment. They did not receive a reply, and Cellophil continued to destroy their ancestral domains. Before Ferdinand Marcos came into power, MERALCO was wholly owned and managed by Don Eugenio Lopez Sr. of the Lopez clan , one of

9936-679: The voice of the Marcos dictatorship. This was beneficial to Benedicto, as it secured his political ties with Marcos and generated income as the owner of the sole running television and radio stations.  Benedicto assigned Enrique Romualdez, a relative of the first lady, as chief editor of the paper to ensure that it held the views of the regime. KBS was the only full-color TV channel in the country, and it was later taken over by Imee Marcos . Benedicto expanded his media business by acquiring Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation (IBC) which had five television stations, and nine radio stations. His growing media empire received government favors from

10044-559: The withdrawal of the PHILCAG in November 1969. In 1969 , Marcos ran for a second term – the last one allowed him under the 1935 constitution which was then in effect. He won by a landslide against 11 other candidates. But Marcos' massive spending during the 1969 presidential campaign had taken its toll and triggered growing public unrest. During the campaign, Marcos had spent US$ 50 million for debt-funded infrastructure, triggering

10152-521: Was $ 3 / barrel in 1973 and $ 39.5 in 1979, or a growth of 1200% which drove inflation. Despite the 1984–1985 recession, GDP on a per capita basis more than tripled from $ 175.9 in 1965 to $ 565.8 in 1985 at the end of Marcos' term, though this averages less than 1.2% a year when adjusted for inflation. The Heritage Foundation pointed out that when the economy began to weaken 1979, the government did not adopt anti-recessionist policies and instead launched risky and costly industrial projects. The government had

10260-615: Was achieved through the creation of government monopolies, awarding loans to cronies, forced takeover of public and private enterprises, direct raiding of the public treasury, issuance of presidential decrees that enabled cronies to amass wealth, kickbacks and commissions from businesses, use of dummy corporations to launder money abroad, skimming of international aid, and hiding of wealth in bank accounts overseas. The first formal elections since 1969 for an interim Batasang Pambansa (National Assembly) were held on April 7, 1978. Senator Aquino, then in jail, decided to run as leader of his party,

10368-409: Was also the general manager of a high-quality pulp and paper mill which supplied the paper needs of the newspaper industry. When Marcos declared Martial Law, he ordered the shutdown of media establishments, and arrested journalists labelled 'subversives'. However, Menzi's Manila Daily Bulletin was allowed to resume publication, on the conditions that Menzi reduces his shares of the company, and that

10476-549: Was also used to create vinegar. Sugarcane farming became an industry after 1856 when Russell & Sturgis first opened a branch in Iloilo for the purpose of giving crop loans to sugar planters. They offered liberal terms to a few Negrense planters, which encouraged some prominent Ilonggo sugarcane planters like the Ledesma, Lacson, Hilado, Cosculluela, Pérez, Alvarez, Sotamayor and Escanilla families moved to Negros in

10584-611: Was attended by a crowd of about two million people. Aquino's camp began making preparations for more rallies, and Aquino herself went to Cebu to rally more people to their cause. In the aftermath of the election and the revelations of irregularities, Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile and the Reform the Armed Forces Movement (RAM) – a cabal of officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) – set into motion

10692-415: 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

10800-665: Was claimed 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-extendable term of President Marcos was about to expire. This suspicion became more credible when opposition leaders and outspoken anti-Marcos media people were immediately placed under indefinite detention in military camps and other unusual restrictions were imposed on travel, communication, freedom of speech and

10908-502: Was generally perceived to be fraudulent, both locally and internationally. International observers, including a U.S. delegation led by Senator Richard Lugar , denounced the official results. Corazon Aquino rejected the results and held the "Tagumpay ng Bayan" (People's Victory) rally at Luneta Park on February 16, 1986, announcing a civil disobedience campaign and calling for her supporters to boycott publications and companies which were associated with Marcos or any of his cronies. The event

11016-495: Was granted logging concessions in Abra and Kalinga-Apayao. They were given authority to exploit 99,565 hectares of pine trees in the area, despite violating two articles of the 1973 Constitution. Articles II and XV of the Constitution provided that the "State shall respect the customs and traditions of cultural minorities and ensure their development as self-reliant communities". Another presidential decree banned all logging operations in

11124-502: Was marked by plunder, repression, torture, and atrocity. As many as 3,257 were murdered, 35,000 tortured, and 70,000 illegally detained according to estimates by historian Alfred McCoy . One journalist described the Marcos administration as "a grisly one-stop shop for human rights abuses, a system that swiftly turned citizens into victims by dispensing with inconvenient requirements such as constitutional protections, basic rights, due process, and evidence." According to World Bank data,

11232-663: Was marked with increased industrialization and the construction of nationwide infrastructure, including the creation of the North Luzon Expressway and the continuation of the Maharlika Highway (Pan-Philippine Highway). In 1968, Senator Benigno 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

11340-474: Was purchased through the Meralco Foundation, a private organization owned and managed by Romuladez. As soon as he acquired MERALCO, electric rates were increased by 100% and continually increased throughout his management. He created a new pricing scheme that came in the form of a rate adjustment clause, which allowed MERALCO to adjust its rates depending on crude oil increase or higher dollar exchange rates. The Meralco Foundation defaulted on its payments in 1985 and

11448-448: Was supported by esteemed Philippine statesman Senator Lorenzo Tañada , who at the time was abroad representing the Philippines at international parliamentary conferences. Upon hearing the claim, Senator Tañada debunked it and clarified that he gave no such support for the declaration. Marcos, who thereafter ruled by decree, curtailed press freedom and other civil liberties, abolished Congress , controlled media establishments, and ordered

11556-476: Was the situation on 20 September 1985, which marked the date of the Escalante massacre , in which paramilitary forces under the command of Marcos-allied Negros Occidental Governor Armando Gustilo gunned down farmers protesting social conditions on the 13th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law . An estimated twenty or thirty farmers were killed, and thirty more were wounded. The Negros famine received

11664-521: Was working with Oxfam at the time, visited Negros and later described the living conditions of thousands of starving and malnourished children: "I drove past the provincial hospital where I first saw hundreds of malnourished children on mats on the floors tended by their mothers, and later, we were in the country through cane fields and small towns remembering the skeletal children being weighed and assessed by our medical team.... There were over 100,000 children in various degree of malnutrition and we started

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