February 17, 2006
EDSA: 20 Years After
It is now 20 years since the Filipino through a "People Power revolution" got united towards the common goal of freeing himself from the bondage of dictatorship and socio-political oppression.
As part of my own commemoration, I have been participating in discussions particularly on the PCIJ blog by submitting some comments.
I wish to share my insights on EDSA: 20 Years After by reposting the comments that I've submitted.
blackboard said,
There is no such thing as taking a vacation from being a Filipino. We can deny our identity but we can never give it up. A true Filipino never will- inspite of all the miseries. Its all we got- being Filipino. Have we tried everything to effect change? I guess not. What we have regressed to is constant bickering and one-upmanship. Let us try being united with a common goal for Philippines for a change. We have attempted that at EDSA 20 years ago, we just didn’t sustain it.
From Edsa 20/20: Carmen Deunida, a.k.a. Nanay Mameng:
blackboard said,
To me, calling the EDSA revolution as EDSA 1 or EDSA revolution is a misnomer. It was never the place, it was the people that made it as it was. It was not the politicians or the military- it was the PEOPLE. Like a movie with sequels, the other EDSAs that followed never measured to the first. The first was out of a need to topple a dictatorship and rise from political and social oppression, the next EDSAs were just a result of political shrewedness, adventurism and opportunism with the people as unwitting participants. And we wonder why EDSA has lost its mystique and potency? We have tainted its spirit. We eventually gave up or are giving up to the “system”. EDSA was about people empowerment and we empowered the wrong people. It is not late to reap the lessons of People Power (sadly after 20 years)- we as a nation can make Philippines better- TOGETHER! Without ulterior motives, without selfish desires. Enough with too much politicism that have gnawed our moral and national fiber. Not because we WANT to make this country better, but because we NEED it.
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