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Contribution and relevance of the speech Explanation

(On 18th of September 1986, seven months since


Cory became president, she went to the United
States and spoke before the joint session of the
U.S. Congress. Cory was welcomed with long
applause as she took the podium and addressed
the United States about her presidency and the
challenges faced by the new republic.)

 The speech starts out with the (She then told of Ninoy’s character, conviction,
narrative of the assassination of and resolve in opposing the authoritarianism of
Ninoy on August 21, 1986. Marcos. She talked of three times that they lost
Ninoy including his demise on 23 August 1983.
The first time was when the dictatorship
detained Ninoy with other dissenters.)

 “The government sought to (Aquino and Sen. Diokno was one of the first to
break him by indignities and be arrested and imprisoned on trumped-up
terror.They locked him up in a charges of murder, illegal possession of firearms
tiny, nearly airless cell in a and subversion. He was tried before Military
military camp in the north.They Commission No. 2, headed by Major-General
stripped him naked and held a Jose Syjuco and brought to Fort Magsaysay in
threat of a sudden midnight Laur, Nueva Ecija.)
execution over his head. Ninoy
held up manfully under all of it. I
barely did as well.”

 Cory continued “When that (Ninoy survived that first detention, he was then
didn’t work, they put him on charged of subversion, murder, and other
trial for subversion, murder and crimes. He was tried by a military court, whose
a host of other crimes before a legitimacy Ninoy adamantly questioned. To
military commission. Ninoy solidify his protest, Ninoy decided to do a
challenged its authority and hunger strike and fasted for 40 days. Cory
went on a fast.If he survived it, treated this event as the second time that their
then he felt God intended him family lost Ninoy. Ninoy’s death was the third
for another fate.We had lost him and the last time that Cory and their children
again. For nothing would hold lost Ninoy. She continued)
him back from his determination
to see his fast through to the
end.He stopped only when it
dawned on him that the
government would keep his
body alive after the fast had
destroyed his brain.
 “And then, we lost we lost him Cory attributed the peaceful EDSA Revolution to
irrevocably and more painfully the martyrdom of Ninoy. She stated that the
than in the past.The news came death of Ninoy sparked the revolution and the
to us in Boston. It had to be after responsibility of “offering the democratic
the three happiest years of our alternative” and “fallen on (her) shoulders.”
lives together.But his death was Cory’s address introduced us to her democratic
my country’s resurrection and philosophy, which she climed she also acquired
the courage and faith by which from Ninoy.
alone they could be free
again.The dictator had called
him a nobody. Yet, two million
people threw aside their
passivity and fear and escorted
Him to his grave.”

 “I held fast to Ninoy’s conviction (Cory talked about her miraculous victory
that it must be by the ways of through the people’s people struggle and
democracy. I held out for continued talking about her earliest initiatives as
participation in the 1984 the president of a restored democracy. She
election the dictatorship called, stated that she intended to forge and draw
even if I knew it would be reconciliation after a bloody and polarizing
rigged.I was warned by the dictatorship. Cory emphasized the importance of
lawyers of the opposition, that I the EDSA Revolution in terms of being a “limited
ran the grave risk of legitimizing revolution that respected the life and freedom
the foregone results of elections of every Filipino.” She also boasted of the
that were clearly going to be restoration of a fully constitutional government
fraudulent.But I was not fighting whose constitution gave utmost respect to the
for lawyers but for the people in Bill or Rights.
whose intelligence, I had implicit
faith.By the exercise of
democracy even in a
dictatorship, they would be
prepared for democracy when it
came.And then also, it was the
only way I knew by which we
could measure our power even
in the terms dictated by the
dictatorship.The people
vindicated me in an election
shamefully marked by
government thuggery and
fraud.The opposition swept the
elections, garnering a clear
majority of the votes

 She asserted:“ My predecessor (Cory then proceeded on her peace agenda with
set aside democracy to save it the existing communist insurgency, aggravated
from a communist insurgency by the dictatorship and authoritarian measure of
that numbered less than five Ferdinand Marcos.)
hundred.Unhampered by
respect for human rights he
went at it with hammer and
tongs.By the time he fled, that
insurgency had grown to more
than sixteen thousand.I think
there is a lesson here to learned
about trying to stifle a thing with
a means by which it grows.”

 Nevertheless, Cory took a step (Cory’s peace agenda involves political initiatives
back when she said that while and reintegration program to persuade
peace is the priority of her insurgents to leave the countryside and return
presidency, she “will not waiver” to the mainstream society to participate in the
when freedom and democracy restoration of democracy. She invoked the path
are threatened. She said that, of peace because she believed that it was the
similar to Abraham Lincoln, she moral path that a moral government must take. )
understands that “force may be
necessary before mercy” and
while she did not relish the idea,
she “will do whatever it takes to
defend the integrity and
freedom of (her) country.”

 Finally may turn to that other (Cory then turned to the controversial topic of
slavery, our twenty-six billion the Philippines foreign debt amounting to $26
dollar foreign debt.I have said billion at the time of her speech. This debt had
that we shall honor it. Yet, the ballooned during the Marcos regime. Cory
means by which we shall be able expressed her intention to honor those debts
to do so are kept from us.Many despite mentioning that the people did not
of the conditions imposed on benefit from such debts. Thus, she mentioned
the previous government that her protestations about the way the Philippines
stole this debt, continue to be was deprived of choices to pay those debts
imposed on Us who never within the capacity of the Filipino people. )
benefited from it.”
 People Revolution, “our must (She continued that while the country had
have been cheapest revolution experienced the calamities brought about by the
ever.” She demonstrated that corrupt dictatorship of Marcos, no
Filipino people fulfilled the commensurate assistance was yet to be
“most difficult condition of the extended to the Philippines.)(She even remarked
debt negotiation,” which was that given the peaceful character of EDSA )
the “restoration of democracy
and responsible government.”
 She stated:“Wherever I went in ( Cory related to the U.S. Legislators that
the campaign, slum area or wherever she went, she met poor and
impoverished village. They came unemployed Filipinos willing to offer their lives
to me with one cry, for democracy. )
democracy.Not food, although
they clearly needed it but
democracy. Not work, although
they surely wanted it but
democracy.Not money, for they
gave what little they had to my
campaign.They didn’t expect me
to work a miracle that would
instantly put food into their
mouths, clothes on their back,
education in their Children and
give them work that will put
dignity in their lives. But I feel
the pressing obligation to
respond quickly as the leader of
the people so deserving of all
these things.”
 Cory then asked a rather
compelling question to the U.S.
Congress:“Has there been a
greater test of national (Cory proceeded in enumerating the challenges
commitment to the ideals you of the Filipino people as they tried building the
hold dear than that my people new democracy. These were the persisting
have gone through?You have communist insurgency and the economic
many lives and much treasure to deterioration. Cory further lamented that these
bring freedom to many lands problems worsened by the crippling debt
that were reluctant to receive because half of the country’s export earnings
it.And here, you have a people amounting to 2 billion would “go to pay just the
who want it by themselves and interest on a debt whose benefit the Filipino
need only the help to preserve people never received.”)
it.

Analysis of the document

PPT explanation
 Cory Aquino’s speech was an It is well known that it was Ninoy who served as
important event in the political the real leading figure of the opposition at that
and diplomatic history of the time. Indeed, Ninoy’s eloquence and charisma
country because it has arguably could very well compete with that of Marcos.)
cemented the legitimacy of the
EDSA government in the
international arena. The speech
talks of her background,
especially her relationship with
her late husband, Ninoy
Aquino.

 In her speech, Cory talked at (Moreover, her attribution of


length about Ninoy’s toil and the revolution to Ninoy’s death
suffering at the hands of the demonstrates not only Cory’s
dictatorship that he resisted. personal perception on the
Even when she proceeded revolution, but since she was
talking about her new the president, it also represents
government, she still went back what the dominant discourse
to Ninoy’s legacies and lessons. was at that point in our
history.)

 The ideology or the principles (She claimed that such


of the new democratic constitution upholds and
government can also be seen in adheres to the rights and liberty
the same speech. Aquino was of the Filipino people. Cory also
able to draw the sharp contrast hoisted herself as the
between her government and reconciliatory agent more than
of her predecessor by two decades of a polarizing
expressing her commitment to authoritarian politics. For
a democratic constitution example, Cory saw the blown-
drafted by an independent up communist insurgency as a
commission. product of a repressive and
corrupt government. Her
response to this insurgency
rooted from her diametric
opposition of the dictator (i.e.,
initiating reintegration of
communist rebels to the
mainstream Philippine
society).)

 Cory claimed that her main (This is seen in terms of continuing the alliance
approach to this problem was between the Philippines and the United States
through peace and not through despite the known affinity between the said
the sword of war. world super power and Marcos. The Aquino
 Despite Cory’s efforts to hoist regime, as seen in Cory’s acceptance of the
herself as the exact opposite of invitation to address the U.S. Congress and to
Marcos, her speech still the content of the speech, decided to build and
revealed certain parallelisms continue with the alliance between the
between her and the Marcos’s Philippines and the United States and effectivity
government. implemented an essentially similar foreign
policy to that of the dictatorship. For example,
Cory recognized that the large sum of foreign
debt incurred by the Marcos regime never
benefitted the Filipino people. )

 Cory expressed her intention to


pay off those debts. Unknown
to many Filipinos was the fact
that there was a choice of
waiving the said debt because
those were the of the dictator
and not of the country. Cory’s
decision is an indicator of her
government’s intention to carry
on a debt-driven economy.
 Reading through Aquino’s
speech, we can already take
cues, not just on Cory’s
individual ideas and aspirations,
but also the guiding principles
and framework of the
government that she
represented.

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