Reminiscing Martial

Law Years

Presented by:

Salvadora, Maribeth

Sarate, Govind

Tatac, Andrelaine

Victorino, Andre
Characters:

Laine (Historian) - She is punctual and a devout friend. She’s interested in history and
is known to be serious among colleagues.

Andre (Public Administrator) - Formerly served in the Marcos administration during

Martial Law as a trustee and one of his most prominent characteristics was being an
Opportunist.

Beth (Public Policy Analyst) - She also lived during Martial Law. Known as a Human
Rights Advocate, Diplomatic, and Objective on things.

Govind (Journalist) - known as a joker in the group and a martial law survivor.

Setting: UP Diliman Campus Grounds, where the old friends reminisce about their
memories for the old times sake. and suddenly it took on their unshared dark past in the
Marcos regime.

Visual Audio
SCENE 1: Laine: What time is it? Where are they?
Looking from her watch with impatient
tone.
Ask in wonder. Andre: Am I late?
Said in a light tone. Beth at Govind: How about the both of us?
In cheerful tone. Changing her sullen Laine: Hey, long time, no see!
expression.
In coax voice. Beth: Uhmm, I’m present; you might act in
a sulky manner again!
Said in a sulky manner. Laine: I'm starting to think you guys are not
coming! Anyway, let's situate ourselves
now.
Getting the attention of her friends and
disclosing a topic.
In agreement.
Halting the group and suggesting
something else.
Holding her arms up to stop whatever
plans her friends think.
Asking for confirmation.
In light tone.
In light tone.
Gesturing herself and what she does in the Laine: Here, I’m retired as a teacher from
farm and her occupation.
Nodding her head in agreement that she’s
listening, then explain what happened to
her.
Said in continuation.
Disclosing a new topic and sharing what
happened to him.
Beth: Hey, I suddenly remembered
something; it seems like before we used to
sit here, listening and talking in this room.
Govind: It's true; a lot happened, as well
as changing...
Andre: Wait, don't you want to go out?
They are happy and celebrating out there.
Why don't we just go along? It looks so
fun...
Laine: Hold on, it's quite noisy outside... Is
it okay, guys, if we just stay here?
Beth: What do you think guys? Alright,
alright. Anyway, how are you guys? How
are you doing?
Govind: I'm doing well; I just started my
small business after I got my pension.
Andre: So far, nothing has been done
other than waiting for the pension every
month. You?
the university where I used to work; now I
am also invited as a speaker often, but I
just do poultry farming with our pet animals
in the province. How about you, Beth?
Beth: I am now just reading a book at
home or watching television. That’s what
I’m busy with after retirement.
Beth: Or other light activities.
Govind: I remember, we graduated as
Political Science students at UP in 1971,
but you all know I have been called into
 the journalism industry.
Agreeing voice, Adding information about Beth: Oh yes, besides that, we know that
his job description. you play a crucial role in disseminating
information to us. Nothing beats you. To
think of it, today’s so different, don’t you
agree?
In affirmative voice. Andre: Right? This generation is so witty;
they do a lot of things that are different
from what we did, back in the day...
In firm agreement. Laine: That's right! This generation is so
awesome. I remember that before, we had
a lot of things to do, but now we are the
ones who are finding things to do.
In light and soothing voice, relax in his Govind: I'm really glad I was able to come
posture. here at the alumni. To talk to you guys
once again. Times are moving too fast. I
remember what happened back then.
In a grim voice. Andre: It’s been five decades since the
dark side of our history happened.
Said in apprehensive tone. Laine: Covered by fear and sadness.
Said in apprehensive tone. Beth: My voice has been blocked and
lacks freedom.

Said in monotone. Laine: September 21, 1972

Looking at his friend’s eye. Govind: Martial law is the time when all of
were challenged.
In engaging tone. Laine: Yes, it’s been 50 years, and
someone says, “If you do not remember
the past, then we are bound to repeat it”.
Said in a loud voice, holding his hand up to Andre: Hey, take it easy, guys. We are
diffuse the tension. here at the Alumni Homecoming to relax
and look back on our memories. Right? I
 suppose since all of us are retired
professionally maybe we can share our
experiences and thoughts without anything
or something, just Facts.
In a high tone of voice. Then asking for Beth: Yes, I agree! I agree with that. So,
details. what exactly happened? After we
graduate, it seems to be a mess;
everything that we are used to has
changed.
In a firm voice. Govind: Well, that’s the impact of declaring
martial law at that time. No media, no
staying late outside from 8 p.m. onwards,
no rally, etc.
Scrunching her eyes in agreement with a Beth: That's it. No rally. I remember that all
firm voice. those things are forbidden; you’ll suddenly
disappear, but why do our friends in the
community disappear one by one?
Monotone voice. Govind: Disappearing becomes a cycle for
those Filipinos.
Monotone voice. Andre: I know that it is not so easy to
move or act in those times.
SCENE 2: Laine: Well, Andre, as you are the public
Ask in an instigating manner. administrator in the Marcos Regime, was it
really easy?
Said in affirmative tone, then afterwards Andre: I know where that's coming from.
with resignation. It's been 51 years, guys. Laine, can we
just enjoy this party?
In a defensive tone, while looking directly Laine: Give me a second is there
in his eyes. something wrong with my question?
In affirmative tone, while nodding his head Andre: Yes, it's not that easy to move in
and doing gestures. the middle of martial law; we're assigned
 to implement public policy to oversee,
manage, distribute resources, and
serve the people of the nation, or some
parts of it.
Getting in between and holding her hand Beth: Guys, guys, hang on; we're not here
up, trying to defuse the tension around the to fight, are we? It's only been a while
room. since we met, haven't we? Then there will
be in trouble. What we really want is for us
to understand each other because after we
graduate, a lot has happened, and we
don't communicate with each other
anymore. Right?
In agreement tone and afterwards digging Govind: Yeah, you're right. I think this is
up the past. the right time to tell how we lived before
and our situation.
In continuation. Govind: and… whatever happened in our
previous lives.
Reminiscing voice. Beth: To think back then, in this
classroom, the children of isko and iska
started here. This is where we started. In
the four corners of this room, it seems that
we were stabilized and learned how to do
greater things. But after that, we face the
harsh realities of our lives during the
Marcos regime.
In firm tone. Laine: We have a fear; we are scared of
the administration, and humanity doesn’t
exist.
Said in a monotone voice. Andre: You know, Laine, if you're against
the government at that time, it's so hard to
live.
Gesturing that she doesn’t want to fight.
In agreement, but suggesting that some of
the things that others did were not worth it.
In provoking voice, demanding answers.
Hopping in the conversation and disclosing Govind: As a journalist who investigates
a new topic, offering a new perspective in
his life.
In confusion and seeking for answers.
Affirming tone.
In apprehensive tone, unsure whether to
disclose what happened to him or not.
Making eye contact and trying to identify
Laine: We are not against the government;
we are just on the side of reality. Were just
fighting for our rights.
Andre: That’s the point you are getting
into, fighting the government. That's why
they are stopping you from fighting,
because some of the fights are not worth
it.
Beth: Yes, but is it really justifiable to kill
those people? They didn’t do anything,
where’s the justice for those 3,240 killed?
and presents news and information to the
public through various media like
newspapers, magazines, television, and
radio, do you guys think I didn’t experience
any kind of torture during that time?
Beth: What do you mean, government? It’s
been 50 years since we had any
communication with everyone. We don't
know what happened to you or even to
any of us.
Laine: Yeah, but as far as I know, there
are a lot of human rights violations that are
very accurate in the data nowadays.
Govind: I don’t know how I will tell you
what I experienced four decades ago. The
pain and the anger inside me made me
feel very helpless, and they still continue to
haunt me. And up until now, justice hasn’t
served any of us.
Laine: Gov, listen, we all know it’s very
what happened and questioning.
Said in a weak voice with a faraway look
and pain in his eyes.
Said in a soft tone and empathizing with
his friend
In a convicted voice, being firm with his
beliefs and will continue to fight.
Said in engaging tone, giving information.
Explaining and giving information.
hard for you as a journalist. Your
responsibilities include your interview,
researching, attending events, verifying
sources' authenticity and credibility, and
analyzing data or events to provide context
and a deeper understanding of the news.
But after the declaration, what happened?
Govind: Inside the interrogation room, the
jailers took out a long steel bar and hit it on
my body parts. The 30 minutes of beating
me up caused me to be severe until my
urine became blood.
Andre: Bro, I didn’t know what to say, but
after knowing that you were a Martial Law
survivor, I just want you to know that we
are more than willing to listen to your story.
Whatever happens to you is validated
Govind: What we fought before is gone.
Even after I retired, I still continue to fight
for freedom and democracy without
historical distortion.
Laine: It isn't far from what we
experienced. Amnesty International states
that in fourteen years of martial law,
70,000 people were jailed, 11,103 were
tortured, and 3,240 killings and
disappearances between 1972 and 1986.
Beth: 70,000 people have been arrested;
most of them didn’t have a warrant of
arrest; 3,240 were killed by the soldiers on
September 21, 1972, when martial law

A feeling of fulfillment.
Said in a proud and encouraging way.
Sharing of idea and feeling of
disappointment.
Preaching through quotation and serves
as enlightenment.
SCENE 3:
was declared; and that’s the day when I
was still choosing the path to take for my
dreams.
Andre: Knowing all of us graduated in
1971 with flying colors.
Laine: As historians, we do research,
examine, document, and interpret the past
as it is presented in sources like
unpublished manuscripts such as personal
diaries and letters, government and
institutional documents, newspapers and
other publications, photographs,
interviews, films, and electronic media.
These are the things I experienced after
Martial Law. It’s so hard to become a
historian during martial law. That’s why
even now I'm getting invited to different
universities to become a speaker.
Beth: As a public policy analyst, our main
role is to research, analyze policies, and
propose solutions to social issues. But
because of martial law, we are prohibited
from doing our job.
We aspire to influence government action
and contribute meaningfully to the
community, and there were a lot of groups
that get arrested because they are just
talking to each other and tagged as
terrorists.
Laine: Just like what someone said,
“History does not repeat itself, but men
repeat history”.
Andre: That's why I understand that
Giving validation.
In tone of being courageous.
In soft voice as a gentle reminder.
In firm voice.
In loud voice and firm agreement.
whatever path we took during martial law,
even if it's good to me and to others. I still
validate what others experienced.
Beth: That's true. That's why whatever
freedom this generation is experiencing
right now, they must learn from history.
Govind: Hey, the past is the past, others
said, but this is part of history, and we
must be aware so that it will never happen
again.
Laine: Never again.
ALL: Never Forget!