May I share a recent item from the column of my good friend Manuel L. Caballero, of New Jersey and New York, USA, on the recent death of former Philippine President Corazon C. Aquino, a global symbol of non-violent struggle for freedom, truth, justice, and democracy.
The Filipino Reporter (New Jersey/New York)
Column: ON MY WATCH (August 7, 2009)
Mrs. Aquino aspired for holy life;
was a faithful creation of God who trusted and obeyed
By
Manuel L. Caballero
These are sad and mournful days for a thankful nation and a grateful people. The Filipinos lost a servant leader. They lost a fierce believer in God, a devoted mother, and a kind and prayerful individual. They lost former President Corazon Aquino or Tita (Auntie) Cory to many.
Even as they mourn their loss, the Filipino people have good reasons to celebrate the inspiring and courageous life that Mrs. Aquino led. As U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton remarked on television upon learning of the former president’s death, “She (Mrs. Aquino) is an inspiration not only to the Philippines, but to people everywhere who believe in right values and positive future.”
She was a leader who led by example. While president, she reportedly instructed her driver to stop on red lights. Towards the end of her presidency, she refused to run in a winnable election and instead, instructed her justice secretary to concentrate
all efforts to effect an orderly and peaceful succession of power.
According to her executive secretary, Mrs. Aquino made that decision in order to demonstrate to her people and to the world that democracy worked in her country after twenty years of authoritarian rule.
The late Filipina leader was, in fact, referred to as “icon of democracy” because she was the one, who, despite limited knowledge on the intimate workings of a democratic type of government, restored democracy and democratic institutions in the Philippines after Marcos’ downfall in 1986.
Christians say during difficult and challenging times that God is testing us or giving us trials. And that He doesn’t give us test that we couldn’t pass or trial that we couldn’t overcome.
The second half of President Aquino’s life was filled with such tests and trials. All indications show she passed them all. Those trials included seven years of incarceration of her martyred husband Ninoy during Martial law years, seven attempts by the military to unseat her during her presidency, fearless campaign for honesty and transparency in government, and the latest, her 14-month cancer ordeal.
Of course, after the trials, the rewards. To us, her installation to the office of president of the Philippines after the People Power Revolution in 1986 was her biggest reward. Although to her, it was another form of sacrifice. Her only son is a senator. Her youngest daughter is a popular and admired television personality.
Mrs. Aquino was Time Magazine’s 1986 Woman of the Year. She was recipient of more than 20 prestigious international awards, including Martin Luther King, Jr Nonviolent Peace Prize and the United Nations Development Fund for Women Award for Political Leadership.
As a strong advocate of freedom and democracy, President Aquino was conferred honorary degrees by 14 academic institutions, including the University of the Philippines, Boston University and Fordham University.
Above all, perhaps, the most significant reward this leader reaps is the love and respect of the world. Virtually, all the major newspapers and radio and television networks around the globe prominently mentioned her death and her life. Leaders of many countries lauded her principled values.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, in a television statement from New York City where she was visiting after a meeting with President Obama in Washington D.C., said the Filipinos lost a national treasure. She also said, “She restored the rule of law and democracy when our country was in turmoil.”
President Barack Obama praised Mrs. Aquino’s role in restoring democracy in the Philippines as well as her moral and courageous leadership.
Pope Benedict XVI has extended his heartfelt condolence to the Aquino family. He recalled Mrs. Aquino’s “courageous commitment to the freedom of the Filipino people, her firm rejection of violence and intolerance, and her contribution to the rebuilding of a just and cohesive political order in her beloved homeland.”
Now that the matriarch of the Aquino family is gone, what or who is next? Watch out for Kris, the youngest daughter of Ninoy and Cory Aquino. I can foresee that she is next in line.
* * *
When news spread that President Aquino could no longer tolerate solid food intake and that her family had decided to stop her chemo treatment, I wrote the following and left it with my Editor before I left for vacation in California two weeks ago. I’d like to share it with our readers:
The loyal and faithful wife of Ninoy Aquino has joined her martyred husband in Heaven. Fittingly, I would describe the story of this extraordinary couple as conjugal martyrdom.
There are two reasons why I won’t forget President Cory Aquino. She restored democracy in the native country after almost 20 years of political vacuum during the Marcos years.
She did that without fear despite her limited knowledge of what and how democratic institutions work and operate. She knew the Filipinos wanted no other form of government but democracy.
The other reason why I won’t forget everybody’s Tita Cory is personal. During the late president’s visit to New York in the mid 80s, specifically to Fordham University in the Bronx, my picture was published on the front page of the New York Times, only because I was at the right place at the right time.
I was with thousands of Filipinos who went to Fordham to witness the conferment of an honorary degree to then President Aquino when, unknowingly, a photographer of the New York Times took a picture of us in a small group carrying welcome placards. The photo was published on NYT’s front page the next day.
Above those two reasons, Mrs. Aquino will be remembered because she aspired to lead a holy life and she was a faithful creation of God who trusted and obeyed.
