The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) launched its “masked media” campaign on Monday to commemorate the 48th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law.
NUJP said the campaign was launched to remember the dark chapter in the Philippine history and to advocate for “a free press for free people.”
“It could be recalled that independent media outfits were closed by the dictatorship and many journalists were arrested,” NUJP wrote in a Facebook post.
“Today, ABS-CBN is again closed while several and many journalists are suffering attacks,” the union added.
On September 28, 1972, late dictator Ferdinand Marcos issued a letter of Instruction No.1, authorizing the military to take over the assets of major media outlets including the ABS-CBN network, Chanel 5, and various radio stations across the country.
“But we remember the past not in defeat or resignation, but in the spirit of those who defied the clandestine mosquito press, to the alternative media of the time,” NUJP said.
“Today, we honor them. And as we do so, we honor the people whose thirst for the truth they served and who, in turn, helped protect them; the people who would, in the end, rise up and throw off the shackles of tyranny,” it continued.
The face mask is for sale as part of a fundraising activity. Proceeds will go to the Defense Fund for Filipino Journalists.
On September 21, 1972, Marcos signed Presidential Proclamation 1081, which placed the entire country under martial rule, spawning a series of summary killings, arrests, and human rights abuses.
Amnesty International estimates that about 70,000 people were imprisoned, 34,000 tortured, and 3,240 killed under the Marcos regime.