How can a nation “move on” from a tragic past if the mass murderers got off scot-free?

The Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (CARMMA) convenor Joanna Cariño said it is difficult to move one when justice has not been served, and when the Marcos family has not shown any remorse for the horrors of martial law and used their ill-gotten wealth to fund their campaign.

On the 50th anniversary of the 1972 Martial Law declaration by the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., various groups staged protest actions. Photos of desaparecidos—those who were abducted and remain missing—were displayed as a constant reminder of families’ continuous search for their loved ones.

“While our physical scars may have already healed years ago, our trauma and pain brought by such dark times remain. And now, with the return of the Marcoses in Malacañang and the absence of justice for those whom they had victimized over the years, it feels like we are walking into another nightmare,” Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA) said.

“Until justice is rendered, we can never move on. Until the billions of their ill-gotten wealth are returned by the Marcoses, we can never move on. Until they have paid their taxes, we can never move on. Until the convicted Imelda Marcos is jailed for her crimes, we can never move on. Until the Marcoses acknowledge the evils of their parents’ conjugal dictatorship and vow never to repeat them, we can never move on,” the Movement Against Tyranny (MAT) said.

Lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc — Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas, Kabataan Rep. Raoul Manuel, and Alliance of Concerned Teachers Rep. France Castro — said they filed House Bill No. 3505 to recognize martial law victims not included in other programs. A monetary award could not alleviate the suffering endured by many human rights violations victims during the regime of Marcos Sr.
but recognizing the martial law abuses that happened is a huge step for most of them, according to these lawmakers.

WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QOBN0TWcuM

Sources:
https://apnews.com/article/religion-philippines-manila-martial-law-ferdinand-marcos-jr-91551c0c14e276967c319073c53d38f1
https://www.rappler.com/nation/234977-martial-law-victims-families-decry-lack-compensation/
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1645015/new-law-providing-reparations-for-marcos-era-martial-law-victims-sought
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/845617/no-justice-no-closure-say-victims-on-50th-anniversary-of-martial-law/story/

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