Twenty five years ago, I was able to take part in the historical Filipino people's revolution in EDSA that overthrew the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. I was just ten years old that time. From the news we saw Ramos and Enrile deflecting from the government, over the radio we heard the call of the Archbishop of Manila to support the two political figures and Corazon C. Aquino.
The silence of the Filipino people was broken. A woman in yellow led the Filipinos into a peaceful revolt to oust Marcos: "Tama na! Sobra na! Palitan na!" those where the very words of Aquino who took the post that Marcos left. There should have been no EDSA revolution if Marcos did not cheat in the snap election that would have seated Aquino in Malacanang at an earlier date before the People's Power.
It was called People's Power by the media, and it lasted for three days. Those were uncertain nights for my family. During those nights, tanks coming from Villamor passes by our streets going to EDSA via Kalentong and Shaw Boulevard. Figthing tanks and army carriers keep on passing. To my mind, I asked: "What was going on?"
My aunt who was a union leader, explained it to me in simple ways, that the "Philippines was about to change through a revolution". She tagged me along with my sister and brother unto EDSA. From Guadalupe we walked towards Camp Crame and Camp Auginaldo. EDSA was not divided that time by the MRT line.
It was a long walk, and people are coming from every corner of the road. People with yellow banners and other paraphernalias, with posts calling for Marcos to step down. Religious groups with the icons of Our Lady of Fatima also walk towards where we were heading. Nuns, priests, mestizos, chinese walk with ordinary people like us. Young, old, rich and poor. Just about anyone and everyone were going there.
The mood was jubillant, as if Marcos' ouster was anticipated. There were barrackades of uniformed men and barbed wires. People would stop for a while until soldiers would allow us to go forth to our direction. Food was a plenty and drinks were overflowing, and they were all free for everyone. There were no political paraphernalias sold, everything was free, shirts, arm bands, ribbons, caps, flowers, religious items like rosaries and bible and others.
At some instances the mood swings to a nostalgic nationalism. People are singing "Bayan Ko" and other political and nationalistic songs while marching. The walk was a risk, but the people seemed to find strength in their number and in their cry for freedom from the Marcos dictatorship. The roaring cry of the public were like drumbeats that thrill the heart of the people in an imminent victory.
After the long walk to Ortigas Avenue, we settled to rest for a while. We joined the praying of the rosary, while tanks from Crame and Aguinaldo keeps on moving little by little to ward off the crowd. Women and men stood still, in front of those tanks unafraid. As tanks moved, people moved closer until, the military is just so close to the people to recieve from them rosaries and flowers and food and drinks.
That was the second night of the revolution, and more peole came in to join the mass on the third day. People stayed there, pray, sung songs, joined hands and told the world that the Filipino are peoples of peace, that we are capable of bringing change in our society without bloodshed.
On its last night, as there were people in EDSA, there were also people building up in Mendiola, breaking the barracades of the Malacanang Palace. Even though others believe that Marcos would not have stepped down without the US intervention, the Filipino people who stood for our freedom, who were there in EDSA and at the Malacananang were the true heroes of the People's Power revolution.
Then, I learned that the phenomenon of a people's revolution is not necessarily coercive, brute and fatal. It is not a protracted war and it does not require an arms struggle. It is spontaneous and social, and disregards political color, religion, ethnicity, economic status or ideology.
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