Task Force Detainees of the Philippines adds its voice to the many voices opposed to the burial of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos at the Libingan ng mgaBayani.
It was TFDP’s committed staff, together with other freedom-loving Filipinos who documented the gross violations of human rights perpetrated by Mr. Marcos and his minions.
Today, we say: Hindi kami maaaring makalimot. Hindi kami makakalimot hanggang katarungan ay hindi nakakamtan. Walang kapatawaran hanggang walang pag-amin sa paglabag sa karapatan ng buong bayan.
We refuse to forget the 101,538 human rights violations perpetrated by the Marcos dictatorship.
We refuse to forget the robbery in band of the nation’s coffers to feed the insatiable desire of the Marcos family for wealth, privilege and profit.
We refuse to forget the insidious attempts by the Marcoses to change the story of repression and violence into a grand tale of greatness and peace.
Our younger generation must learn lessons from our history. Every one of us should stand up for what is right. Every individual should learn to defend, not only her/his rights but also the rights of others. United action is never doomed to fail.
Dictatorship has been interred in the graveyard and the current generation must forever be vigilant that it never rises again.
Human rights must be vigorously promoted, defended and progressively realized as our contribution to the struggle for human dignity.
The late great Sen. PepeDiokno said, “…though unintended: the Martial Law government has made us value our freedom. It wasn’t until we lost it that we began to realize how valuable it was. We tended to abuse freedom and we tended to take it for granted.”
We refuse to forget the sacrifices of the women and men of courage who stood up and fought against tyranny. Martial Law is unforgettable for the selflessness, courage and unity of the people that culminated in the EDSA uprising of 1986. The sons and daughters of the motherland valiantly faced the might of the dictatorship armed only with the determination to be free.
We refuse to forget.
To do so will kill our quest for justice for our people.
To forget is to let our stories of those dark times disappear into oblivion.
To forget is to erase the sacrifices of our heroes and martyrs.
To forget is not to learn from the lessons of those times.
To forget is to succumb to historical amnesia.
To forget is to let the Marcoses win.
We simply cannot forget. We choose to remember!
We oppose the Marcos burial at Libingan ng mgaBayani!
TASK FORCE DETAINEES OF THE PHILIPPINES
September 2, 2016
Video Credit: ABS-CBN
