Solidarity Statement of Concerned Kagay-anons against the burial of Marcos in the Libingan ng mga Bayani

Thirty years ago, Filipinos rallied against the injustices of Martial Law. Filipinos left a mark in our history where the sovereign Filipino people ousted the dictator and fought to uphold the dignity of our Democracy.

Today, as it seems, many of us have forgotten how history changed us. Today we face the challenge of keeping in our hearts the lessons of Martial Law. We were told that the burial of Marcos in the Libingan ng mga Bayani shall heal the wounds of history and shall help us forgive and forget the pains of our past.

We stand here today, in solidarity, as we oppose the burial of the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

We cannot accept such statement that burying Marcos together with the heroes of our country will unite us and help us move forward. This we vehemently oppose as we echo the following statements:

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani buries human dignity by legitimizing the massive violations of human and civil rights, especially of the right to life that took place under his regime.

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani buries truth by perpetuating the myth of Marcos’s achievements as a leader, distorting the valuable lessons of history that we pass on to our young, and confusing them about what constitutes heroism.

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani buries justice by justifying the shameless corruption of the dictator, his family, and the oligarchy of cronies he created. It violates the moral values we cherish as a nation by rewarding wrong and making it seem right.

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani buries solidarity by denying the pain and anguish of the many victims of human rights violations and their families, the misery of the poor who suffered most under Marcos’s development policies, and the sacrifices of those who fought to restore the country’s fallen democratic institutions.

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani buries peace by erasing the memory of the violence that his regime inflicted on our nation.

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani buries genuine empowerment by legitimizing the concentration of power in a single leader and the suppression of democratic rights and participation under his regime, and by negating the triumph of the empowered popular movement that unseated him.

Burying the dictator in the Libingan ng mga Bayani will not heal our wounded country.

Concerned Kagay-anons is a loose network composed of representatives from various sectors such as the academe, church, NGO and the Youth.

At the onset of President Duterte’s pronouncement of his support to bury Ferdinand Marcos Sr. in the Libingan ng mga Bayani, a growing clamor to oppose his decision has echoed among various sectors especially those who were adversely affected by the Marcos dictatorship.

There is no denying that to this day, we are still haunted by the memories of abuse and injustices most Filipinos have experienced during the Marcos Regime. It is disturbing to hear comments from people who are obviously uninformed and detached from the experiences of Filipinos during Martial Law.

This motivated the group to organize a Solidarity Rally against the burial of Marcos in the Libingan ng mga Bayani. The group intends to break the silence among Kagay-anons who seemed to have forgotten the dark years of our history and refuse to honor the real heroes who fought for our democracy.

The group echoes the statements of the following institutions on the same topic: Institute of Social Order (ISO), John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues (JJCICSI), and Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (SLB).

-INDJNC-