21/09/2026
On the 54th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law, we remember a period that profoundly shaped Philippine history. On September 21, 1972, Proclamation No. 1081 was dated, placing the nation under Martial Law during the presidency of Ferdinand E. Marcos. Promising peace, order, and a โNew Societyโ, the regime presented Martial Law as a path toward stability and reform. However, this period was marked with the silencing of the press, the weakening of democratic institutions, and the widespread arrest of critics, including political leaders and journalists.
According to the Human Rights Violations Victimsโ Memorial Commission (HRVVMC), September 21 is commonly observed as the anniversary of Martial Law, but the declaration was publicly announced on television on September 23, 1972, after widespread arrests had already begun.
The human rights violations committed during the Marcos regime are formally recognized under the Philippine law. Through Republic Act No. 10368, or the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ด๐ป๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐๐บ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฒ๐
๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป, ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ, ๐ฒ๐ป๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ๐น๐๐ป๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ต๐๐บ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐๐ ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ during this period.
๐ฑ๐ฐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ, ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ต๐ถ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ. Remembering this period means returning to documented history and recognizing the experiences of those who lived through it, thereby preserving these accounts for future generations and standing together to make sure that historyโs suffering is never repeated.
We, the Validus Amicitia residents, ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐๐ข๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐ช๐จ๐๐จ, ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ค๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐, ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐จ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ฉ๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐ฌ. We ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ข๐ก๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ข๐จ ๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ง ๐ฉ๐ง๐ช๐ฉ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐.
