MARTIAL LAW

GROUP 4
 Martial law is the temporary
substitution of military authority
for civilian rule. It is usually
invoked in times of war, rebellion,
or natural disaster.
 On September 21, 1972, the former president of the
Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Sr., signed the
Proclamation No. 1081 which states that the Philippines
shall be under the military authority, otherwise known as
martial law, and took effect the next day, September 22,
1972. On the night of September 23, 1972, Ferdinand
Marcos spoke to the nation on television and by radio to
make it known that he had declared Martial Law in the
Philippines.
 According to the Official Gazette of the
Philippines, It was said that Martial Law
was already planned by Marcos a week
before the declaration of martial law with
the evidence written in his diary on
September 14, 1972, informing the military.
Why was martial
law declared?
 It is the last defense against the rising
disorder caused by increasingly violent
student demonstrations, the alleged
threats of communist insurgency by the
new Communist Party of the Philippines
(CPP), and the Muslim separatist
movement of the Moro National
Liberation Front (MNLF).
 ACTIONS
● Arrest opposition politicians in the
Congress
○ Lorenzo Tañada, Jose W. Diokno,
and Jovito Salonga
● Constitutional conventions
● Shutting down of mass media
● Suspension of the Writ of Habeas
Corpus
● Cancellation of flights
● Implementation of curfews
● Dispensation of military tribunal
rulings on civilians
● Collection of unregistered firearms
● Concessions given to foreign
investors like prohibition on strikes
by organized labor and land reform
program was launched.
● Congress was abolished
● Mass activities were prohibited
● Political parties were outlawed
● Civil and political rights were
suspended
THE STRUCTURE OF
GOVERNMENT DURING
MARTIAL LAW REGIME
• When martial law was declared, the Constitutional Convention, by virtue
of an Act of Congress in 1971, was in the process of drafting a new
Constitution.
• The final draft was adopted by the Convention on November 29, 1972.
This was ratified and proclaimed by President Marcos on January 17,
1973, amidst widespread protest and controversy.
• The three branches of government are still present but the functions were
changed since President Marcos changed the form of government from
presidential to a modified parliamentary form.
• Marcos exercised all the powers of the president under the old system
plus the powers of the prime minister under the new system- he is both
the political and ceremonial officer.
• In legislative, Congress was abolished and was replaced by an elected
unicameral National Assembly, known as Batasang Pambansa.
 EFFECTS
PROS
• Reduced violent crimes
• Unregistered firearms were collected
• Martial Law allows the Military to
swiftly act on Internal Threats like
Insurgency, Civil Uprising, Rebellion,
and like sorts that will entail Clear
and Present Danger to the stability of
the Government, Economy, and
Public Safety.
• Peace and Order
• Governmental Reform
• Land Reform
• Increased Revenue
• Increased Foreign Investments
• Improved Tourism
CONS
• The economy crashed as we were once
called as a sick man of Asia.
• Killings of more than thousands
• The power of the military was put into
oppression
• Repression and Terrorism
• Curtailment of civil liberties
• Higher Prices
• Muslim insurgency
• Slow pace of reforms
• Domination by Foreigners
• Public criticisms were silenced and
the information which people have the
access to were controlled.
REACTIONS
Initial public reaction to martial law
was mostly favorable except in Muslim
areas of the south, where a separatist
rebellion, led by the MNLF, broke out in
1973.
Communist insurgency expanded with
the creation of the National Democratic
Front (NDF), an organization embracing the
CPP and other communist groups.
The Downfall of
Marcos, End of
Martial Law, and the
Return of Democracy
Martial Law officially ended on January 17, 1981, with
Proclamation No. 2045. Marcos, however, would reserve decree
making powers for himself.

The assassination of Benigno Aquino as he returned to Manila

in August 1983 became the focal point of a renewed and more
heavily supported opposition to Marcos’s rule.

In late 1985, Marcos called a snap presidential election for

February 1986 where Corazon Aquino, Benigno Aquino’s widow,
became the candidate of a coalition of opposition parties.
Marcos was declared the official winner, but strong public
outcry over the election results precipitated a revolt, the famous
People Power Revolution, that by the end of the month had driven
Marcos from power.
THANK YOU
FOR LISTENING!