On 51st Martial Law anniversary, GABRIELA renews call to abolish Anti-Terror Law
Members of the women’s group GABRIELA marched from Liwasang Bonifacio to the Mendiola Peace Arch on Thursday, Sept. 21, to amplify calls for the abolition of the Anti-Terror Law (ATL) during the 51st anniversary of the declaration of martial law.

GABRIELA displayed photos of women who were victims of Martial Law and lettered purple butterflies reflecting "women's desires for justice and freedom both 51 years ago and today."
“It is a cruel insult to the memories of the women martial law martyrs who lost their lives seeking to topple the Marcos dictatorship that not only is Marcos Sr.’s inept son now in power, but he has also brought de facto martial rule into full force through the draconian Anti-Terrorism Law (ATL)," said Clarice Palce, GABRIELA’s Secretary-General.
For GABRIELA, the Anti-Terrorism Law "usurps" judicial powers and "eliminates" checks and balances, which the group attributes to be "much like Martial Law."
"Under the overly broad Anti-Terrorism Law, speaking critically about the government can and has already been declared an ‘act of terrorism,’" Gabriela said.
GABRIELA also believes that the ATL is associated with the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) under Executive Order 70 to "silence critics, equate their advocacy with armed rebellion, and demonize the latter as ‘terrorism.'"
"Since the ATL’s passage, 34 citizens have already been charged in relation to this law, 16 of them being women,” Palce said. (Lizst Torres Abello)