Loida Magpatoc calls on the youth to join the movement for national liberation and democracy

during the commemoration of the 44th anniversary of the declaration of martial law in Manila,
Sept. 21. (Photo by Neil Ambion)
“Even though I was pregnant, I was not exempted from torture.” — Loida Magpatoc
She was given the water cure. While she lay on her back, water dripped from a jar placed about three feet
above her head. After about 15 minutes, she lost consciousness.

Sometimes, her captors played darts, using her face as the dartboard. The worst was the Russian
roulette: a soldier placed a single bullet in a revolver, spun the cylinder, placed the muzzle against her
head, and pulled the trigger several times.

One time, she was taken out of the camp and the soldiers told her she would be killed. Her cousin, who
was arrested along with her, was “salvaged,” the military’s term for summary execution.

For five months, she was hidden from the public view. No visitors. No lawyers.
“They tied an electric wire to my thumbs. The wire was connected to a military field phone so
each time they cranked it, it sent electric shocks. They interrogated me and every time I did not
answer, they electrocuted me.” — Trinidad Repuno Herrera
On April 23, 1977, intelligence officers caught Herrera while she was on her way to Xavierville in Quezon
City. “They grabbed me. I kept on shouting, asking for help. Later on I learned that someone recognized
me and intelligence agents went around looking for people who knew me,” she said.

Though she had been arrested several times already, Herrera felt that this arrest was to be different. She
was brought to the police station along United Nations Avenue in Manila.

“When we arrived (in the police station), there were already nuns looking for me. The police said my
friends were very fast in locating me. The nuns spent the night at the police station to look after me,”
Herrera said.

The next day, Herrera was brought to Camp Crame in Quezon City. “I was brought to a small room. It was
very cold. I was freezing,” she said.

Though Herrera was only in her 30s at that time, she recalled how she was tortured as if it was only
yesterday.

“They tied an electric wire to my thumbs. The wire was connected to a military field phone so each time
they cranked it, it sent electric shocks. They interrogated me and every time I did not answer, they
electrocuted me,” Herrera tearfully recalled.
“My thumb bled,” she said, “but they did not stop. I was already shouting and still they did not stop.”

“When they stopped, I thought it was already over. But they tied the wires to my nipples. I thought I would
explode,” she said.

Soldiers tried to force Herrera to sign a blank paper. “I refused. I insisted on seeing my lawyer,” she
added.

“Naked, they electrocuted me. Naked, they beat me up. I have chosen to forget the details
because it still pains me.” — Romeo Luneta
Tatay Romy said he was arrested by the military on the belief that he was Jose or Pepe, a younger
brother, who, according to the military, was then a high-ranking member of the Communist Party of the
Philippines (CPP). Five other siblings Ernesto, Domingo, Maxima, Franco and Francisco were also
activists. Tatay Romy was the first to be arrested.

Francisco, 59, said he was arrested in the early morning of May 12, 1974. That afternoon, Domingo was
also arrested at the house of Fidel Agcaoili, another activist who was also arrested. Pepe was arrested in
1975 somewhere in Navotas.

On April 12, 1974, Franco’s wife Margarita and two-year-old daughter Ningning were among the eight
individuals who were abducted by state agents in Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija. They remain missing to this
day.

When asked about the torture, Francisco just said: “All types of [kawalanghiyaan] cruelty.” But Francisco
said their brother Ernesto suffered the most.

“Hands tied, he was drowned in a swimming pool. The torturers would revive him and repeat the process
over and over again,” Francisco said. “They would also pour hot water on him, followed by cold water that
made his body shake involuntarily,” he added. Long after Ernesto was released from prison, Francisco
said, his brother’s legs still trembled.

Ernesto was beaten up repeatedly to the point that his legs and arms became bloated, said Francisco.

Ernesto died last year. Domingo died in 2007. Only five of them, including Maxima, Franco and Pepe are
still alive.
Dan

ilo Dela Fuente attends the protest action marking the declaration of martial law. (Photo by
Ronalyn V. Olea / Bulatlat.com)
Lifting his shirt, Dela Fuente pointed at the soft spot just above his stomach and said, “They
would hit this with their hands, formed into a ‘cobra’ and I would cringe in pain.” — Danilo Dela
Fuente
Dela Fuente, along with seven others, was arrested on Feb. 25, 1982. At around lunchtime that day, while
Dela Fuente and other union organizers were having a meeting, elements of the Philippine Constabulary
and military intelligence group raided their headquarters.

Dela Fuente was first brought to Camp Crame where he saw other activists rounded up from different
parts of Metro Manila. They were asked to line up outside one of the buildings as military assets identified
them. He remembered seeing then Col. Rodolfo Aguinaldo, known for torturing activists. “Nang makita
niya si Alan Jazmines, sabi niya, ‘Suki!’ Tuwang-tuwa ang gago. Nangigigil.”

At Camp Crame, Dela Fuente experienced what he called as “cobra.” Lifting his shirt, Dela Fuente
pointed at the soft spot just above his stomach and said, “They would hit this with their hands, formed into
a ‘cobra’ and I would cringe in pain.”

Days later, his body became numb.

He was later transferred to Fort Bonifacio. Along with three other activists, Dela Fuente was blindfolded
with a five-inch masking tape. His captors told him, “Ano? Nakita mo na ang wala?”
Many times, his head was banged on the wall. He was also subjected to electrocution.

The mental torture, he said, was just as bad.

Every night, they would hear the door open. When soldiers hit the door with truncheons, they knew one of
them would be taken out. Minutes later, they would hear screams. “Nakikilala namin sa boses kung sino
ang kinuha,” he recalled.