NOT ON OUR WATCH: Martial Law really happened. We were there.  EDITOR: Jo-Ann Q. Maglipon; WRITERS: Angie Castillo, Calixto V. Chikiamco, Jose Dalisay Jr., Manuel M. Dayrit, Jaime FlorCruz, Jay Valencia Glorioso, Diwa C. Guinigundo, Sol F. Juvida, Victor H. Manarang, Al S. Mendoza, Jack Teotico, Roberto Verzola, Vic A. Wenceslao; ILLUSTRATOR: Edd Aragon 

 

From the Prologue.  On October 10, 2010, members of the League of Editors for a Democratic Society (LEADS)—College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP), circa 1969 to 1972, held their first reunion in forty years.

       The reunion brought back memories of their involvement in the life-and-death struggle many Filipinos waged against the Marcos dictatorship during that period. They recalled how, amidst the worldwide student protest movements of the 1970s, Filipino students staged their own revolt. Linking arms with other sectors of Philippine society, they launched a series of protest actions that reached the proverbial tipping point from late December of 1969 to the early months of 1970. That historical watershed came to be known as the First Quarter Storm, or FQS.

This book is partly an answer to a member's lament that her children do not know her. She told the gathering how surprised her children were upon knowing that she had been editor in chief of her college newspaper, and at a time, too, when campus papers were in the thick of the national ferment.

…We decided to publish this book so that our children would know of us. Our children know us, certainly, but not many of them know how, during our tender years (some of us not past seventeen), we put our lives on the line and fought a deadly struggle with the Marcos dictatorship. How, as editors and writers of our college papers, we vigorously confronted martial rule and its excesses. How, as callow as were in years, many of us paid for our convictions by being jailed, with a number of us suffering unspeakable torture under interrogation. And how, just having stepped into our twenties, some of us were already made to pay the ultimate price--life itself.

"Socdem: Filipino Social Democracy in a Time of Turmoil and Transition, 1965-1995", Edited by Benjamin T. Tolosa, Jr.

From the back of the book:

Because a full-fledged study of Filipino social democracy has not been undertaken before, this effort at collective storytelling is valuable in itself as a way to recover political memories and draw out oral histories of this political tradition. The study also aims to document the history of Filipino social democracy both as an ideology (a social vision appropriate to Philippine conditions) and as a political movement (the organizations who have espoused it and their political praxis, including efforts at coalition building). From these stories, we can draw out distinctive themes and learning experiences that have relevance not just from the perspective of the past, but also for renewing political education and engagement present.

Regional Autonomy and Federalism: Concepts and Issues for the Bangsamoro Government

by Sukarno D. Tanggol

Blurbs:

"The publication of this book written by Professor Sukarno Tanggol is very timely in view of the renewed public interest in the possible resolution of the Mindanao conflict and the ongoing peace negotiations between the Philippines Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The postponement of the regional elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao has given rise to a new level of public discourse on the kind of political arrangement that would address the clamor of the Bangsamoro people for self-determination without sacrificing the territorial integrity of the country." - Alex B. Brilliantes, Ph.D [Professor; National College of Public Administration and Governance, University of the Philippines.]

"Dr. Sukarno Tanggol's book is very timely. The prospects of a peace settlement between the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front are much better compared to the past, and we have accumulated more than enough experiences and lessons since the Local Government Code was passed and implemented in 1991. His concerns as an academic and a Mindanawon are reflected in this well-laid argument favoring federalism as an option to the current state. Let the conversation over alternatives continue with all of us having this book on our side. - Patricio N. Abinales, Ph.D [Professor; Center for Philippine Studies, University of Hawaii-Manoa]

Crown, Cross and Crusaders: European Legacies in the Philippines/Krone, Kreuz und Krieger: Europäische Vermächtnisse in den Philippinen

by Dr. Reiner Werning

Dual language (English and German). Translated into German by Gisela, Richard, Sarah De Lorie & Wolfgang Bethge

"I shall establish a school and if you can bear the climate, then you shall be the director. I am sure all the young ones, the best in the country shall come to us; Blumentritt-Rizal will stay in the memory of the Filipino people like Goethe and Schiller, like Horatius and Virgil, like the Humboldts." - Extract from a letter of Jose Rizal to his friend Ferdinand Blumentritt.

PRIMED AND PURPOSEFUL: Armed Groups and Human Security Efforts in the Philippines by Soliman M. Santos, Jr and Paz Verdadez M. Santos

Excerpt from the Introduction:
 
"At the center of this book are the 'primed and purposeful' protagonists of the Philippines' two major internal armed conflicts: the nationwide Communist insurgency and the Moro insurgency in the Muslim part of Mindanao. Steeped in firsthand knowledge of the conflicts and containing the most detailed, insider-informed group profiles available, this book offers a deeper understanding of the country's many armed groups --- from the ideologically driven and militarily strong to the opportunistic and criminal. This volume argues that while these non-state armed groups and their offshoots are undoubtedly part of the human security problem in the Philippines, they must also be part of the solution."


Blurb:

"Primed and Purposeful provides the political and historical detail necessary to understand the motivations and probably outcomes of conflicts in the country. The volume explores related human security issues, including the willingness of several Filipino armed groups to negotiate political settlements to the conflicts, and to contemplate the demobilization and reintegration of combatants into civilian life. Light is also shed on the use of small arms --- the weapon of choice for armed groups --- whose availability is maintained through leakage from government arsenals, porous borders, a thriving domestic craft industry, and lax regulatory regime." - David Petrasek, Author: "Ends and Means: Human Rights Approaches to Armed Groups

12 (1998-2012) YEARS OF THE PARTY LIST SYSTEM: Marginalizing People's Representation edited by Bobby M. Tuazon

Excerpt from the Foreword:

"The party-list experiment began as a reform measure to strengthen our demoncracy but, after more than ten years, has been abused to pervert it. This volume examines the whole range of difficulties faced by the party-list system, and the nature of these difficulties tells us a lot about the weaknesses of our democracy itself."

The Good Lawyer: 5 Keys to Lawyering With Integrity by Atty. Bobby Quitain

"Keeping Your Clients Without Losing Your Soul"

Blurbs on the back cover:

"[This] is an extraordinary book because of the extraordinary truth within its pages." - Atty. Theodore O. Te; UP Vice President for Legal Affairs

"I do hope the idealism expressed in Bobby's book will inspire not only the young but also the not-so-young lawyers to walk the straight and narrow path of the law profession and for them to realize that doing good and doing well while practicing law are not inconsistent with each other." - Atty. Simeon V. Marcelo; Former Ombudsman of the Philippines

"This is truly a wonderful book that every lawyer, law student, and law professor in our country should have as a lifetime companion." - Atty. Alexander Lacson; Author, 12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country.

"heartbeat: Manila Hilton" edited by Marla Yotoko-Chorengel and Letty Jacinto Lopez

From the summary on the back cover:

The skyscraper of dreams - that was the Manila Hilton, at 22 storeys, the tallest building in the Philippines in the sixties and its first 5-star international hotel. It was here where foreign expatriate executives and locals worked together to create a unique multi-racial mix. It was a period when the Philippines enjoyed an energized campaign courtesy of the Hilton International chain's worldwide network, and the country's shores were graced by an influx of  overseas tourists.

Decades ago, the Manila Hilton vanished from the Manila horizon. But, during its lifespan, the hotel touched our lives like  prism that colored our working days within the hotel. The Manila Hilton lingers in the landscape of our memories and still lends its hues and intensities in our present, perhaps our future, too.

Rekindling the past, the spirit of our hearts is palpable. We offer no apologies for the unabashed exuberance of our personal reflections. Rather, we invite our friends of the Manila Hilton era to journey with us now to our shared yesteryears, and, who knows, to unleash some of their own endearing yesterdays. Together, we can wonder where all that magic came from, why the explosion of sentiments... imagine this!

"Unyonista: The Chronicles of a Social Justice Crusader" by Edmundo F. Nolasco

      Edmundo "Ka Ed" F. Nolasco was born in1921 in Dapitan, Zamboanga. He went to high school at the Ateneo de Cagayan (now Xavier University), and to college at the Ateneo de Manila, where he earned his AB degree and graduated class valedictorian in 1949.

     The social encyclicals, especially Pope Leo XIII's Rerum Novarum, and his Jesuit mentors, notably Fr. Joseph Mulry, S.J., and Fr. Walter Hogan, S.J., inspired him to take the road less travelled, a road the led to his lifetime work in the Filipino labor movement.

     "Unyonista: The Chronicles of a Social Justice Crusader" is a story of his journey through the changing historical circumstances of the Philippines in the 20th century and the the different ways he expressed his steadfast commitment to social justice—from fighting in the trenches of Bataan as an Ateneo ROTC volunteer during the Pacific War, to organizing workers to fight for their rights, helping build the nationwide movement against the Marcos dictatorship and today, working to address the plight of the forgotten war veterans and their families.

Political Vengeance & Societal Perdition by Atty. John R. Castriciones

From the back cover:

“In this book, Atty. John Castriciones examines his experience of public service, Catholic and Christian teachings, law and history. From this background, he reflects on the importance of governance or leadership: it can continue the prevailing culture and politics of vengeance or be accountable to the common good beyond family and clan interests. People in power can exert tremendous influence on issues of education, health, land, international trade and justice; or just miss the opportunity to make a difference in the life of the poor and the nation. John is inviting us to reflect not just on what leaders say but what they witness with their lives. John deserves to be heard and read especially on contemporary issues in the Philippine setting.”

– Fr. Teodulo P. Gonzales, SJ

Center for Family Ministries

Ateneo de Manila University