CATHOLIC bishops weighed in on the controversial burial of former President Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani and urged the faithful to pray that the nation moves forward and people learn to forgive in the church’s Jubilee Year of Mercy.
But civil groups, among them the anti-Marcos August Twenty-One Movement, vowed to press their opposition via a massive protest that will be staged at still unannounced locations on November 25.
Meanwhile, at least 2,000 supporters of the Marcos family visited the grave of the former president at the Libingan, a day after he was buried without state honors but with military rites befitting a former president of the Republic.
Lipa Bishop Ramon Arguelles urged people to let their faith in God reign in accepting the burial of the late dictator since it is important that the dead be given peace.
“It is said that [Marcos’ burial at the Libingan] diminishes the spirit of Edsa [Revolution of 1986]. I don’t believe that,” Arguelles said.
“But faith in God is certainly diminished. If we are truly for God, we will pray for him after death even if he is a dictator. Let us pray for his soul. Let us respect his remains,” the prelate said in an interview over Radio Veritas.
“He sinned. We should not say that he did good. But let us not be hateful. He is already dead,” Arguelles added.
But Atom issued a statement that forcing-through the burial was “a finishing touch worthy of the dictator Marcos’ long list of sneaky tricks he did on the Filipino people.”
“To avoid continued friction in the country on the issue, his supporters should have accepted the supposed offer of the American government to have him buried between George Washington and Richard Nixon somewhere in the US. The logic behind the proposal?
Washington couldn’t tell a lie. Nixon couldn’t tell the truth. Marcos couldn’t tell the difference,” the group said in a statement.
“Marcos buried beside legitimate heroes here could only lead to the rest of the citizenry to scream profanities — and they could pick up a curse or two hundred from the Marcoses’ principal patron,” the group added.
For his part, Military Ordinariate Bishop Leopoldo Tumulak said both sides of the controversy have valid reasons for their positions.
“I respect the people who are against the burial of President Marcos at the Libingan and I also respect the desire of Marcos people to have him be buried at the Libingan,” he said in a separate radio interview.
“I just pray that this can be resolved peacefully, that’s all I can say about this case. I hope a dialogue is on because this will have to be resolved someday,” said Tumulak, chairman of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Prison Pastoral Care.
Bishop Noel Pantoja, national director of the Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches, said it is important that the country moves on.
“We can truly move on as a nation and release forgiveness if truth is established and transgressions are acknowledged,” he said in a statement.
“We should respect the decision of the Supreme Court with all the dissensions and differing views of justices. That’s how our system works,” he said. “I submit also to the President’s decision as it is his prerogative based on personal bias within the bounds of law.”
“We cannot ignore the historical facts that thousands were killed, tortured and deprived of human rights during the rule of Marcos. Millions thronged the streets in 1986 to depose him.”
At least 2,000 supporters of the former leader, meanwhile, visited Marcos’ grave to pay their respects for the former president.
The supporters were ferried to the military cemetery by 51 buses and 49 private vehicles around 7 a.m. They were led by members of the Marcos family, including Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Marcos and children, Bongbong, Imee and Irene.
Supporters of the Marcos clan said they paid for their own transportation and miscellaneous expenses.
They hope that the sudden relocation of Marcos to the heroes’ cemetery in Taguig City would eventually be accepted by the entire country and, like them, see it as an act of unity.
But the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan called a press conference at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City to announce a big protest rally.
“On November 25, it’s a weekday, let us get together around 4 p.m. for a big rally,” said secretary-general Renato Reyes. “We need to do this immediately after [President Rodrigo] Duterte returns from Peru.”
He said they may stage the protest action at the Rizal Park, Liwasang Bonifacio and Mendiola in Manila, and in Makati City but the venues are not yet final.