Sighs could only take us so far.

A body of lies and untold stories are waiting to be found inside the dark crevices of Philippine history. One should not only be open to the stark reality that much of what is written in the pages of history is not what it seems to be. The recording of events can easily be manipulated to better serve the whims and prejudices of its writer. Seeing events as the separate recording of what seems to be the most significant disturbances in the space-time continuum can be misleading and, not to mention, blinding to anyone who views the past as such. Proper caution and unnerving dedication to the truth must therefore be practice if one wishes to uncover the truth to any historical account. As such, the recording of history should never be left to the hands of historians. Professor Fernandez’s commentary on the untold side of history is, unsurprisingly, controversial, refreshing, and truth be told, very telling. Let me share some of her most compelling accounts.

Even at the start of the semester, Professor Fernandez’s fascination and outright admiration for the late President Marcos became more and more apparent. I cannot blame her for I also share the same belief with that of hers. Marcos is, indeed, a brilliant statesman who was deeply conscious of the intricacies of history and the politics of the time. Though he may have committed a number of human rights abuses, his successes in his economic reforms could not be left unmentioned. His achievements in history cannot be left out because in doing so, a great injustice will be, yet again, be committed against this greatly misunderstood man. He was the only Philippine president to have dared open diplomatic relations with the socialist bloc with the likes of the USSR and China. It was during his administration that the country started to veer away from its abusive capitalist allies-led by the United States. Similar to our Asian neighbors, he was also hell-bent for the industrialization of the country. He saw that the country’s current ally would never allow the Philippines’ to avail of its national sovereignty and develop its current factors of production. It took a lot of courage for Marcos to cross over the current hostilities that typically surrounded communist countries and, in the process, he equipped the country with the necessary trading partners that would enable the country to advance in its bid for industrialization.

The case of China’s unprecedented economic achievements as well as other non-democratic neighbouring countries reveals that economic progress does not need democracy for its fruition. As the 25^th of February draws nearer, I could only wonder if what would have become of the Philippines if democracy was not restored. Could the country be better equipped for the challenges of tomorrow? Or more importantly, could the Philippines attain its true sovereignty in the process? These are questions that can only be left for time to decide. It is a shame that Marcos can only be remembered by the human right abuses during his time and not his ambitious dream of a prosperous and sovereign Philippines. (01/20/2011)