WE MAY not always consider that events that take place in the Philippines can have worldwide consequences which are universally commemorated. This is recognized by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
UNESCO has instituted a Memory of the World programme “which attempts to protect our heritage in the form of documents, manuscripts, oral traditions, audio-visual material and archival holdings of universal value.”
It has avoided being a mere recitation of historical facts but instead has included events which have permanent significance.
There are 245 events that are recognized. These record our history from 1700 BC to the present day.
The first of these recognize the Treaty of Quadesh signed between what is now Turkey and Egypt. This well-known treaty of “eternal peace” guaranteed harmony and security throughout the area for a considerable length of time. How a symbol of the movement for peace, the Treaty of Quadesh, adorns the walls of the United Nations building in New York.
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One of the more recent events recorded by the United Nations (UN) is the radio broadcast of the Philippine People Power Revolution. To quote the UN, what exists are “unedited recordings of the live radio broadcasts that were made during the peaceful popular revolution against the role of President Marcos in Manila in 1986. This was one of the first times that the events during a popular uprising had been broadcast live to the world.”
Therefore, it is not possible for anyone to attempt to rewrite history by downplaying or omitting altogether some key aspects of what happened. In fact, as we have already seen, to do so merely exacerbates our concerns about the shocking events that have taken place in our recent past.
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The UN provides a more detailed commentary. Accompanying a photograph is the caption which says: “The crowds that came out on to the streets of Manila in support of the People Power Revolution that toppled the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. The radio recordings of this mass peaceful demonstration provide invaluable evidence of the success of the rising.”
To quote Lapsus Calami, “we should not try to diminish the importance of past events or worse, rewrite history.”
The UN continues: “the collection of radio accounts is a complete and unedited account of the revolution in the Philippines from the time the rebellion started on 22 February to the time when President Marcos fled the country on 25 February 1986. These four days marked the transition from dictatorship to democracy through a peaceful popular uprising which resolved a dangerous military standoff without the use of armed force or loss of life.”
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Should there be a discussion in schools about the events of 1972 (martial law) and 1986 (people power)?
Of course!
A thorough understanding of past events is necessary to try to avoid the horrible consequences that can occur in the future./PN
