Philippine Republic, Martial Law Period and Post-Martial Law Period

New award-giving bodies came out, and one of these was the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Award for Literature, known
to be the most prestigious and the longest-running award-giving body in the field of literature, equivalent to the world-renowned
Pulitzer Prize. By this time, the Philippine writers were producing works in English, the vernacular, and Filipino (one of the official
languages of the country and the Tagalog-based national language as promulgated by Pres. Manuel L. Quezon during the
Commonwealth Period, opposed to the Tagalog, the language spoken by the majority of dwellers in Southern Luzon). The following
names bywords in the Philippine literary scene because of their outstanding contributions:

 Lazaro Francisco  Wilfrido D. Nolledo

 Amado V. Hernandez  Wilfrido P. Virtusio
 Jose Garcia Villa  Ricaredo Demetillo
 Alejandro G. Abadilla  Virgilio Almario (aka Rio Alma)
 Genoveva Edroza-Matute  Efren Abueg
 Claro M. Recto  Rogelio R. Sikat
 Paul A. Dumol  Edgardo M. Reyes
 Tony Perez  Bienvinido A. Ramos
 Emmanuel Torres  Bienvinido N. Santos
 Nick Joaquin (aka Quijano Manila)  Kerima Polotan Tuvera
 N.V.M. Gonzalez  Lamberto E. Antonio
Under the administration of Roxas, Quirino, Magsaysay, Garcia and Macapagal, the writers enjoyed greater liberty in terms
of content, style, and genre. However, after the declaration of Martial Law by Marcos on September 21, 1972, the writers’ freedoms
were curtailed in much the same way as the other freedoms were suppressed. During the Martial Law years, only the government
publications continued to see print; the rest was discontinued. Anti-government and anti-Marcos writings proliferated in the form of
underground publications led by Malaya. The lives of oppositionist writers were controlled by the state. Some of them whose works
were found subversive or seditious were silenced by means of summary execution; others were illegally detained and torture. Even
after the lifting of Martial Law on January 1, 1981, the censorship of publications continued. Publishing companies that were closed
did not reopen. The literary works were much the same as those composed during the first year of the Period of the New Society
(Kilusang Bagong Lipunan or KBL). Anti-Marcos writers voice out their sentiments in the form of poems, short stories, essays, and
plays.
The assassination of Sen. Benigno Aquino on August 21, 1982 revived the nationalistic spirit in the Filipino writers. The
desire was most intense as the protest reached its climax during the EDSA revolution, the much-celebrated bloodless struggle
between the Reform the Army Movement (RAM) soldiers led by Col. Gregorio Honasan and the Marcos-loyalist soldiers as a
result of the February 1986 snap presidential polls. Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Fidel V. Ramos and
the Secretary of the Department of National Defense Juan Ponce Enrile, sided with Honasan’s group that Pres. Marcos decided to
leave the Philippines. It spelled good news to the writers who exposes about the family’s ill-gotten wealth, Imelda’s jewelry and shoe
collections, Swiss accounts, and innumerable cases of human rights’ violations.
The EDSA Revolution of 1986 was responsible for the restoration of the lost freedoms, among which was the freedom to
express one’s ideas and emotions in writing. It was this unlimited freedom that prompted feminist writers and their supporters
(GABRIELA) to speak out their views about male chauvinism, equality of rights between men and women, women’s liberation,
violation of women’s rights, etc. Similarly, LGBT writers enjoyed as much freedom and made their voices heard through their
revealing writings about discrimination, same-sex marriages, homosexual and bisexual relationships, and violation of their rights.
To inspire the Filipino artists in the different genres of art, the National Artist Awards were given to deserving individuals.
In the field of literature, the recipients of the National Artist are as follows:

 Jose Garcia Villa (1973)  Francisco Sionil Jose (2001)

 Amado V. Hernandez (1973  Alejandro Roces (2003)
 Nick Joaquin (1976)  Virgilio Almario (2003)
 Carlos P. Romulo (1982)  Bienvinido Lumbera (2006)
 Edith Tiempo (1999)  Lazaro Francisco (2009)

With your group, dramatize the poem while one member reads it aloud. Make sure that certain metaphors or symbols in the
poem should stand out. Afterward, one member should explain the theme of the poem, and how this was shown in your skit.

Apo on the Wall

By BJ Patino
 There’s this man’s photo on the wall
Of my father’s office at home, you
Know, where father brings his work,
Where he doesn’t look strange
Still wearing his green uniform
And colored breast plates, where,
To prove that he works hard, he
Also brought a photo of his boss
Whom he calls Apo, so Apo could,
You know, hang around the wall
Behind him and look over his shoulders
To make sure he’s snappy and all.
Father snapped at me once, caught me
Sneaking around his office at home
Looking at the stuff on his wall – handguns,
Plaques, a sword, medals, a rifle –
Told me that was no place for a boy,
Only men, when he didn’t really
Have to tell me because, you know,
That photo of Apo on the wall was already
Looking at me while I moved around,
His eyes following me like he was
That scary Jesus in the hallway, saying
I know, I know what you’re doing.

In order to appreciate the poem about martial law and former President Marcos, try to find out what older people think or feel
about martial law. Interview two people and ask them the following questions:
1. What do you remember about martial law & Ferdinand Marcos?
2. Do you think Martial Law was a good or a bad time in Philippine history? Why do you say so?
3. Why should we study this period in our history and what can we learn from this period?