B-20 VIDAL, ALECK MYEL C.

11-HUMMS BONIFACIO

THE MARTIAL LAW

A year has passed since President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared

martial law in the Philippines on the 21st of September 1972. Issuing
the declaration under Proclamation 1081 which suspended civil
rights, gagged the news media, and imposed military authority in the
country, Marcos defended this draconian move under the Philippines
Constitution in response to a series of bombings allegedly caused by
communist rebels. At the height of the Cold War, the emergency rule
was also planned to quell rebellion and drive national development.
Four decades later, on the 12th of September 2012, President
Benigno Aquino III signed Republic Act No. (RA) 10175, or the
Cybercrime Prevention Act, into law. This legislation was immediately
widely condemned as a threat to freedom of expression on the
internet, the media, and online privacy and has been likened by
human rights groups, media freedom advocates, 'netizens', and
opposition Congress members compared to the Marcos Martial Law
era. Kabataan Representative Raymond Palatino branded the
legislation 'e-Martial Law', comparing it to repressive Marcos-era
decrees censoring and harassing the media. Fifteen Supreme Court
appeal petitions were lodged against the Cybercrime Law but the
subsequent ruling found the law constitutional in February 2014. This
article examines the law, challenges since the constitutional ruling,
and demands for repealing the law and replacing it with a so-called
'Magna Carta' of internet media freedom' Martial law occurred at a
bleak time in the history of the Philippines and in the career of
President Ferdinand Marcos. The populace was apparently united in
only one thing--they need for drastic action, and it appears that
martial law was accepted calmly by the overwhelming majority of
Filipinos. After one month of martial law, President Marcos seemed in
control of a civilian government, with a strong military presence,
implementing a series of well-planned, detailed reforms, cracking
down on dissidents, and was as yet not brutal in everyday life
application.

The imposition of martial law has helped to reaffirm the primacy of the
multinational corporation in Philippine economic affairs. As a student of
martial law, you may want to learn more about the MNCs and local
corporate giants that dominate and control the Philippine economy and
polity. Several research aides exist for monitoring the economic sector.
Business Day, a daily newspaper devoted to coverage of Philippine
business activities (see below), irregularly publishes a data book on the top
corporations operating in the Philippines. The series first appeared in 1968
and included statistics on the top 200 corporations for the year 1967. The
next report appeared in 1970 and included data on the 1000 top firms
operating in 1968. Subsequent Business Day's 1000 Top Corporations
reports have appeared in March 1971 (covering data on 1969 firms), and on
November 15, 1971 (which included 1970 business data). In addition,
several recent pre-martial law bibliographies on business and economic
activities exist that may provide you with further research leads. Erlinda S.
Morco has compiled a comprehensive bibliography on Philippine Business
Literature (Division of Business Research, College of Business
Administration, University of the Philippines/Diliman, 1971, 427p.) and
Belen Angeles and Rachel Cabato have put together A Bibliography of -6
Periodicals and Statistical Sources on the Philippine Economy (Institute of
Economic Development and Research, School of Economics, University of
the Philippines/Diliman, 1970, 65p., xiiip).

References:
https://scholar.google.com/

LV Carino - Philippine Sociological Review, 1980 - JSTOR

D Wurfel - Pacific Affairs, 1977 - JSTOR

T Walsh - 1973 - scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu