ASEAN owe to Cory
| Sat, 08/08/2009
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/08/08/letters-asean-owe-cory.html


On Aug. 1, Cory Aquino, an icon of democracy in this part of the world, passed away. She became president of the Philippines in 1986 and many countries in this part of the world have become democratic since then.
It was 1986 and I was working in Surabaya. Freedom of Press didn't exist for years. One just saw what was shown on TVRI in Dunia Dalam Berita. Though many tried to listen to BBC's World Service to get comprehensive news coverage, tuning in was difficult and quite often it would play hide-and-seek, frustrating the listeners.
I still remember TVRI coverage of Philippine revolution. Many video clips pass in front of my mind's eye, showing a huge crowd, estimated to be about a million people, on Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) in Manila.
I remember seeing a woman demonstrator offering a flower to the gun-toting soldier and him accepting it in confusion reducing the overall tension.
I remember the dialogue between General Ver and Marcos that TVRI showed and how it left Ver confused.
As the people poured in the streets to protest against a *stolen' election, there were defections in the ranks. Defense Minister Enrile and Gen. Ramos (who later became President himself) broke ranks with Marcos and joined the democratic movement. I remember the sharp salute Gen. Ramos gave to his new Commander-in-Chief clad in yellow, when she declared his promotion as Chief of Armed Forces.
I remember the way she accepted it with an affectionate feminine smile. Helicopters air-lifting Marcos and family to Clark Air-force Bases were also shown.
We should not forget her husband who was a promising senator who showed enormous courage to return to Manila from self-imposed exile.
He knew his life was at risk, but still came back, donning a bullet-proof vest before alighting. But despite these efforts he was shot dead on the tarmac as he departed the plane.
He was a very popular senator and could have dislodged Marcos in 1973 elections to become a president himself. But Marcos imposed Marshall Law! People in power do take such steps to remain in power.
He had a great success as a young senator who persuaded communist rebel Luis Taruc to surrender. Thanks to Ninoy, Luis Taruc escaped with a prison sentence instead of death by hanging.
Often the performance of a successor to a towering leader in power for many years looks lackluster, so was the case with Cory. In her six years as president, not much worthwhile happened. But that she remained a president for six years to make sure that her country remained a democracy is her greatest achievement and she deserves kudos for that.
People in ASEAN countries owe a great deal to Cory and her assassinated husband Ninoy Aquino for the freedom in which they live today.
I am sure many of us today will be grieving the loss of an amazing leader.
K. B. Kale, Jakarta