UCA News
Contribute

Experiential museum reminds Filipinos of horror of martial law

Journey Toward Light stages scenes from life under the dictator Marcos
Experiential museum reminds Filipinos of horror of martial law

In the "Hall of Orphans," children hold photographs of missing loved ones, while asking visitors about the whereabouts of their parents in the Journey Toward Light museum in the Philippine capital of Manila. (Photo by Eloisa Lopez)

Published: February 26, 2016 09:31 AM GMT
Updated: February 26, 2016 09:32 AM GMT

Thelma Vinoya was a 31-year-old government worker when the Philippine People Power Revolution broke out in 1986.

"Without hesitation, we ditched our jobs and joined the revolution after hearing Cardinal Sin on the radio," Vinoya recalled. 

The late Cardinal Jaime Sin, who was then archbishop of Manila, was instrumental in rallying the people to gather on EDSA, the capital's main thoroughfare, to call for the ouster of former president Ferdinand Marcos.   

"I went with my entire family with nothing but wet towels on our hands, ready for the worst," Vinoya recalls after 30 years. 

Wet towels are used by activists to protect themselves from the effect of tear gas lobbed by policemen.

Thirty years hence on Feb. 25, Vinoya poses with a cardboard standee of Cardinal Sin in an "experiential museum" inside a military camp in Quezon City for a souvenir picture.

In one of the museums haunting exhibits, participants lie motionless and are bound and blindfolded where a recording is played of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos declaring martial law. (Photo by Eloisa Lopez)

 

The Journey Toward Light museum features nine halls that stage scenes during the 20-year martial rule of Marcos.

Through theatrical performances, art installations, music, and cinema, visitors to the museum experience the dark, disturbing, and haunting events that actually happened in the 1970s and 1980s.

Near the entrance of the museum is the "Hall of Restless Sleep" where people lie motionless, arms tied, and blindfolded.

"My countrymen, as of the 21st of this month, I signed Proclamation No. 1081, placing the entire Philippines under martial law," plays a recording of Marcos declaring martial law over the radio.

Millie Kilayko of the People Power Commission says the museum aims to make people, especially young people, feel and understand the horrors of those years

In the "Hall of Hidden Truths," scenes of how Marcos' friends live during the martial law years are seen through peepholes on a wall filled with photographs of poor people.

The "Hall of Orphans," crying children hold photographs of missing loved ones, while asking visitors "Have you seen my brother?" or saying "My mother is missing."

Up to 73,000 Filipinos were imprisoned, tortured, and killed during the martial law years.

In the "Hall of the Lost and the Disappeared," photographs of victims of forced disappearances are plastered on the walls while an art installation of a group of people holding empty picture frames stand in the middle.

"They are empty, much like their hollow insides, for they had no closure to the deaths of their loved ones," explains Toym Imao, the artist behind the installation.

Actors perform a comedy act on the various methods of torture in the "Hall of Pain."

"We have made it entertaining and laughable for you because who would want to remember a dreadful past?" the actors say. The drama ends, and the actor asks "You think this is funny?"

A priest stands in the "Hall of the Lost and the Disappeared," where photographs of victims of forced disappearances are plastered on the walls. (Photo by Eloisa Lopez)

 

Thousandsofvictims

Thirty years has passed since the revolution, and the Marcoses remain powerful in the Philippines. Marcos loyalists remain defendants to their idols, acting oblivious to the thousands of victims who suffered physically and emotionally during the regime. 

The story of Maria Lorena Barros, a mother and founder of the Free Movement of New Women, is told in the "Hall of Forgotten Martyrs."

"She is a woman who has discovered the exalting realm of responsibility, a woman fully engaged in the making of history. No longer is she a woman for marriage, but more and more a woman for action," an actor recites. 

Commissioner Kilayco says the country needs to understand its history and Filipino children have to learn the mistakes, the pains, the sorrows, and the joys of the past. 

"We want every Filipino, especially the young, to know what we as a people have gone through because only through that way can we grow as a nation," Kilayco says.

In the "Hall of Awakening," a water tank is fired for visitors to experience how it was like to be attacked at a protest. A military tank is also set up with real soldiers holding flowers given by civilians, a reenactment of a scene from the 1986 people power uprising. 

Toward the end of the museum, a hologram of President Benigno Aquino is shown urging visitors to never forget the past for "those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

Help UCA News to be independent
Dear reader,
Lent is the season during which catechumens make their final preparations to be welcomed into the Church.
Each year during Lent, UCA News presents the stories of people who will join the Church in proclaiming that Jesus Christ is their Lord. The stories of how women and men who will be baptized came to believe in Christ are inspirations for all of us as we prepare to celebrate the Church's chief feast.
Help us with your donations to bring such stories of faith that make a difference in the Church and society.
A small contribution of US$5 will support us continue our mission…
William J. Grimm
Publisher
UCA News
Asian Bishops
Latest News
UCA News Catholic Dioceses in Asia
UCA News Catholic Dioceses in Asia
UCA News Catholic Dioceses in Asia