Martial Law Survivors Condemn Enrile as ‘Architect of Repression’ in the Philippines
Two Cebuano Martial Law survivors, Democrito Barcenas and Meinrado Paredes, have spoken out against the late Senate president Juan Ponce Enrile, describing him as 'the architect and implementer of martial law'. They remember him as 'an enemy of democracy and freedom' due to his role in the controversial period.
Enrile, who served under Ferdinand Marcos Sr., oversaw operations that led to widespread abuses against farmers, lumad communities, activists, and opposition figures during the martial law period. Survivors and rights groups insist he should be remembered for enabling arrests, censorship, and abuses. Democrito Barcenas, who was arrested and detained for three months without charges due to his student-activist lawyer status, described Enrile's martial law declaration as resulting in thousands of grieving widows and orphans.
Jaime Paglinawan, chairperson of Bayan Central Visayas, pointed to the controversial ambush on Enrile in 1972 as a justification for the martial law declaration. Enrile maintained that the martial law declaration was necessary to quell threats of communist and secession movements. Ironically, he was also pivotal in the 1986 People Power Revolution that eventually toppled the Marcos regime.
History continues to judge Juan Ponce Enrile for his role in the martial law period. Despite his later involvement in the People Power Revolution, survivors and rights groups insist that Enrile's legacy remains tied to the abuses and suffering caused by the martial law period he helped implement.
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