The movie Batas Militar is a good movie because it showed us what really

happened during the Marcos regime. It showed us how President Marcos had greed for
power. He wants to remain as president of the republic even though he was not elected
as one. Marcos was a good president because in his time, the Philippines was raised
and the economy was good but when his term starts to end, he still wants to remain on
the office for good. He craved for power and never wants to end it because of that, he
strengthened the power of the military so that the military will protect him from the
opposition which Ninoy Aquino was a great threat for him.
By then, he declared the Martial Law which made him like a dictator and he can
do anything under his power and also suspended the Wrath of Habeas Corpus which all
militaries can capture anyone they wishes to abduct. The suspected people also are put
to jail without due process of the court. The people that time rebelled against Marcos
but they did not succeed. Many people were killed and abducted. Many families lost
their loved ones. The Philippines that time was very chaotic. No one could speak about
bad motives of Marcos because if they do, they will be killed by the military.
I realized that its not easy to live that time full of chaos and harm. I was thankful
that Marcos was stepped out from the office and replaced by our Mother of Democracy,
Corazon Aquino because it ended his motives to put the Philippines under his power.
For me, intelligence is one thing that a president must have but also it needs a good
attitude and selfless motives for his people. Power must not be abused by the president.

Why did he declare Martial Law? To the anti-Marcos elements, it was due to his
immense greed for power and wealth nothing more, nothing less. Marcos declared
Martial Law because of Ninoy Aquino.
Ninoy Aquino was the new political superstar of the time. In all likelihood, he was
going to be the next President. But Ninoy was perceived rightly or wrongly as a
communist, or at least sympathetic to the communist movement that was leading the
social unrest threatening to engulf the country.
The constitutional option for Marcos had run out. The explosive bribing scandal
that exposed his attempts to influence the delegates to the Constitutional Convention of
1972 to allow him to run again killed that alternative.
It was at the height of the communist movements popularity. For a society beset
by severe social inequity and grinding poverty like the Philippines, communism certainly
provided a stark alternative, with its own powerful mass appeal, to challenge the unjust
status quo.

In fact, Southeast Asia then, in particular Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, ( as in

Korea), was fast being run over by the Communists, due to the huge support of the
people.

Perspectives of people about martial law

Question asked: What did your parents tell you about martial law?
They told me that during the Martial Law, the country was so rich. Many infrastructures
were made and people were disciplined.
My own opinion:
Putting a country under Martial Law is done if a threat has been bothering the country.
Thus, its the defense mechanism of the country to lessen or prevent future devastation
that can cause the fall of the nation. However, if people with evil desires will use Martial
Law for personal enrichment, thats the time it is not right. I could say that Martial Law
has been beneficial to our country, but it took so much time and already oppressed the
rights of the Filipinos.
Question asked: Do you think putting the country in martial law will be beneficial for
everyone?
Martial Law has its advantages and disadvantages. According to my mother, it has
advantages to the poor and has disadvantages to rich people.
My own opinion:
Not one government type will be beneficial for everyone; not even democracy, because
in a diverse country like the Philippines, different communities breed different kinds of
people. Different people work and cooperate best with different government types.
Some people need freedom to execute their ideas, while some need rigid discipline to
keep them on track.

People involved during the Martial Law:

1 Ferdinand Marcos
-Marcos started the war because of his greed for power and he refused to step
down from the office.
2 Diosdado Macapagal
-He ran for re-election but was ultimately defeated by Marcos who was a senator.
3 Sergio Osmea Jr.
-Ran for president against Marcos and lost but Marcos won though violence and
was charged with fraud.
4 Benigno Ninoy Aquino Jr.
-Was assassinated in the airport when he arrived from his exile.
5 Corazon Aquino
-Won against Marcos in the election for president and she was the 1 st female
president of the Republic of the Philippines.
6 Salvador Laurel
-Head of the United Nationalists Democratic Organizations (UNIDO)
7 Fidel Ramos
-Supported Marcos but when Corazon ran for president, he stopped helping
Marcos.

8 Imelda Marcos
She was the wife of Ferdinand Marcos who was exiled together with her
family when Ferdinand Marcos lost the election against Corazon Aquino.
9 Juan Ponce Enrile Sr.
-Was the Justice Secretary and Defense Minister under the Marcos regime.
10 Richard Lugar
-Headed the US delegation during the Marcos regime