#rememberML@40: Share the past, empower the youth to take care of tomorrow
InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
MANILA, Philippines - "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Thus said philosopher George Santayana.
And this is what human rights groups do not want to happen 40 years after the horrors and harrows of the Martial Law regime.
Through their Facebook community page campaign, tagged #rememberML@40, which started six months before the anniversary of the September 21, 1972 declaration of Martial Law by President Ferdinand Marcos, the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), Philippine Alliance of Human Rights (PAHRA), and Claimants 1081 are encouraging ML survivors to share their stories to the youth.
The groups are currently organizing discussions, retelling of stories, and online events to generate 40,000 voices of informed and inspired individuals who will remember the lessons of Martial Law and call for justice for all victims.
“We pledge to reach 40,000 people especially the youth by September 21. Who can best tell stories to our youth about the heroism of human rights defenders during the dictatorship but the generation who witnessed and fought against Martial Law, and the new generation has to know, so that it will never happen again. One of the best tools to reach them is social networking sites,” said Max De Mesa, PAHRA chairperson.
Also, the groups are pushing for the enactment of the Compensation Bill for victims of human rights abuses during the Marcos regime.
“The bill has been filed and re-filed since the 10th Congress. Some of the victims are already dead, others are sickly and still the survivors bear the agony of waiting for justice," said Emmanuel Amistad, executive director of TFDP.
"It’s been 26 years since the downfall of the dictatorship and yet justice continues to elude the victims of martial law. We are doing this type of campaign to enlighten the public and to generate support for the bill," added Amistad.
