Philiipines Torture

By Jeri Laber
October 30, 1976

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San Juanico is a bridge in the Philippines that connects the islands of Leyte and
Samar. in Philippine prison parlance, it is also a method of torture: A political prisoner
subjected to the “San Juanico bridge” is forced to lie with his naked body suspended
between two beds and is beaten and kicked in the stomach and thighs whenever he sags or
falls.

Russian ??? is used to Intimidate or to extract information: Suspects are ordered to

spin the chamber of a partly loaded gun and then to fire it into their own heads.

Stripping, sexual abuse, electric shock, and the use of “truth‐serum” drugs are other
standard procedures. Hot irons are sometimes pressed against the bare soles of a prisoner's
feet; cigarettes and cigarette lighters are often used to burn genitals, mouths and eyelids.
Faces are pushed into toilet bowls; heads are held under water until the victims pass out.

Perla Somonod, pregnant at the time of her arrest, was made to lie clasping a block
of Ice on her stomach until her baby died. A Protestant pastor, arrested in March 1974 and
still under detention, was forced to drink his own urine.

The extent and severity of torture In Philippine detention centers came as a shock
to an Amnesty International investigatory team that visited Luzon at the end of 1975.
Almost 70 percent of more than 100 prisoners interviewed described horrifying, sadistic
abuse and displayed burns, scars and contusions to confirm their accounts.

1
 A report published last March by the Association of Major Religious Superiors in
the Philippines also documents cases like those reported by Amnesty International and
estimates that perhaps 90 percent of all political detainees have been tortured.

When President Ferdinand E. Marcos imposed martial law in 1972, he gave the
armed forces the power to arrest and detain indefinitely all persons suspected of
insurrection or rebellion. In doing so, he has debased the Constitution that, like our own
fundamental law, is concerned with the protection of individual rights and a system of
checks and balances.

The Congress has been abolished, the judiciary rendered ineffective, and the
President and his military leaders now rule without restraint. Anyone who opposes
Government policies is vulnerable to arrest, and, without the right to due process of law,
indefinite confinement; torture appears to be almost a routine part of the detention
procedure.

Among those detained under martial law are members of the opposition party,
former Congressmen, workers, students, farmers, journalists and clergymen. Many of the
detainees, some of whom are barely out of their teens, have never been charged with a
crime. Not one has been tried and convicted.

While denying the existence of routine torture in the detention centers, President
Marcos has admitted that in four years under martial law about 50,000 people have been
arrested for political offenses. The Government says that as of May 1975 all but a “mere”
6,000 had been released, but there are many who question that figure.

The Government also insists that it has extended “humane and decent treatment to
detainees.” Allegations of torture are “highly exaggerated,” according to official
spokesmen, and the cases that have been reported are aberrations that are being corrected.
Indeed, since Amnesty presented its recommendations to Philippine officials, some of the
prisoners mentioned have been released and at least four of the 88 torturers named in the
Amnesty report have been arrested and charged with crimes. Nevertheless, numerous
arrests have taken place in recent months and the use of torture continues.

President Marcos would like to project an image of legitimacy and responsiveness

to the needs of his people. if worldwide attention is focused upon the suffering of political
prisoners in Philippine detention centers, he may be forced to institute reforms that are no
longer token, but real.

Reference:

The New York Times. (n.d.). Philippines torture.

https://www.nytimes.com/1976/10/30/archives/philippines-torture.html

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 Jeri Laber and Her Stand to Human Rights

John Mark B. Magayon

Introduction

This paper analyzes Jeri Laber's “Philippines Torture” and examines how the social
and political issues during martial law are framed, what issues are emphasized and left out,
and how the underlying ideologies in the discourse are interpreted. This paper provides
background information to help readers understand the content and context of the
discourse.

Jeri Laber's article "Philippines Torture" was published on October 30, 1976, nearly
five years after former President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law throughout the
Philippines. Jeri Laber is a member of Amnesty International, a global organization that
campaigns to end human rights violations (Amnesty International, 2021), and the founder
of Human Rights Watch. As a founder, Laber has petitioned governments all over the world
on behalf of political insurgents and those subjected to inhumane conditions and regimes
(Encyclopedia Authors, 2019). With her background, she was able to write an article that
served as a petition or an appeal to the suffering of Filipinos during the Marcos regime.
According to Maria Cristina Bawagan, a martial law survivor, illegal arrest, torture,
salvaging, and enforced disappearances occurred during this period (University of the
Philippines Los Baños, 2019). In her article, Laber revealed the torture methods used
during martial law, how the oppressed were abused, and how the oppressors denied it. To
assert that there were violations of human rights at the time - according to Chua, M. (2012)
Marcos declared martial law in order to "save the republic and reform our society," but
with such power and resources granted to the military in order to "save" democracy, they
were able to commit a number of human rights violations. And, as Ninoy Aquino put it,
"in saving democracy, [Marcos] killed it." As a result, as a human rights advocate, Jeri
Laber wrote the article to show how Filipinos suffered under the Marcos regime.

Framing

This part will present how the content of the ‘Philippines Torture’ is framed by the
author, Jeri Laber through examining the lines. In here, social and political issues are
framed in the light of a human right advocate, so she stands beside her advocacy and as
what she believed is right.

The article began with Jeric Laber’s defining what San Juanico Bridge is. She began
the article affirming that “San Juanico is a bridge in the Philippines that connects the
islands of Leyte and Samar.” It is one of the monumental projects under Marcos
administration (Sabornido, 2014). Looking only at the subject, the word ‘bridge’ basically
means a structure that is built over a railway, river, or road so that people or vehicles can
cross from one side to the other. It was clearly framed in the text that the purpose of the
San Juanico Bridge was to connect islands in the Philippines. On the other hand, she added
that San Juanico Bridge has another meaning other than that. In her article, she stated that
“in Philippine prison parlance, it is also a method of torture:” She presented another
meaning of the subject right away, but this time she presented the denoted meaning of the
‘bridge’. She showed that the San Juanico Bridge, aside from being named to a structure,
was also named for a torture. Obviously, she made a short hint by contrasting the words
‘bridge’ and ‘torture’. According to her, “A political prisoner subjected to the “San
Juanico bridge” is forced to lie with his naked body suspended between two beds and is
beaten and kicked in the stomach and thighs whenever he sags or falls.” We can say that
the concept of torture is somehow related to the idea of how San Juanico Bridge connect

3
islands, but was not clearly stated by the Laber. On the other hand, looking deeply at the
first two mentioned lines framed by Laber, it concludes that, a method of torture was called
San Juanico Bridge, after a bridge connecting Samar and Leyte provinces built during the
Marcos administration (Pedroso, 2014).

Meanwhile, she then presented another method of torture under Marcos regime, the
Russian roulette. Russian roulette is a lethal game of chance where a single round is placed
in a revolver, the cylinder is spun, and the player sets the muzzle against his or her head
and pulls the trigger. Without rotating the barrel of a six-chamber pistol after every pull,
the average number of tries before the bullet discharges is 3.5 (Macpherson, n.d.). In the
article, Laber stated that the idea of the Russian roulette was “used to intimidate or to
extract information.” It shows that the victims under Marcos regime were forced to speak
or reveal something they know that opposes the government system. They were forced and
threatened to speak using the ‘Russian roulette’ torture. Danilo Dela Fuente, a political
prisoners who had been jailed during the Marcos era spoke of Russian roulette torture. In
the article of Gray, D. (1986) he said that he was brought in for ″tactical interrogation″ by
the military in 1982. Soldiers also twisted gun barrels inside his mouth and played a
variation of Russian roulette by putting a pistol he didn’t know was unloaded to his
forehead and pulling the trigger. He said that one interrogator who was trying to get him to
confess that he was a communist told him, ″you are going to die tonight.″ On the other
hand, there is also one torture stated in the article which have the same purpose to Russian
roulette, the ‘truth-serum’. It is an injection administered in hospitals and used for
interrogation, making a victim "talk drunkenly" (Hapal, 2016). Thus, Russian roulette and
truth-serum are one of the methods or strategies of the military in order to cast and to reach
all the communist who opposed the government system and to get even.

Aside from the tortures mentioned above, Jeri Laber continuously laid many
methods of tortures which victims of the Marcos regime experienced. Method of tortures
includes, “Stripping, sexual abuse, electric shock, and the use of “truth‐serum” drugs are
other standard procedures. Hot irons are sometimes pressed against the bare soles of a
prisoner's feet; cigarettes and cigarette lighters are often used to burn genitals, mouths
and eyelids. Faces are pushed into toilet bowls; heads are held underwater until the victims
pass out.” Through this, she framed that the Marcos regime uses different methods of
torture and done nothing to the victims but threat and suffering. According to Chua, M.
(2012) torture is used to extract confessions from people suspected to be involved in
treason, insurrection and rebellion, or to make the victim implicate somebody. To do this
to a small sector of our society is meant to scare the community at large.” On the other
hand, it lays the foundation on what the Marcos regime truly is in the perspective of a
human rights advocate.

In accordance, the result of the Amnesty International investigatory team produced

when they visited Luzon at the end of 1975. It is stated in the article that, “Almost 70
percent of more than 100 prisoners interviewed described horrifying, sadistic abuse and
displayed burns, scars and contusions to confirm their accounts.” This means that torture
is truly happening in Marcos regime, because 70% percent of the victims has spoken about
the truth. The way it was framed by Laber using the words ‘horrifying, sadistic abuse and
displayed burns, scars and contusions’ is enough to say that Marcos regime is truly
terrifying and full of suffering. “Here (Marcos Regime) thousands of lives lost, and
thousands of families destroyed. The human rights violations happened, and they were
real” (Chua, 2012).

Though given the report from the Amnesty International investigatory team, former
president Marcos denied the tortures. Laber stated that “While denying the existence of
routine torture in the detention centers, President Marcos has admitted that in four years
under martial law about 50,000 people have been arrested for political offenses.” It was
framed that former president Marcos is denying the fact of tortures, and covered it by
admitting that because of political offenses about 50,000 people have been arrested.

4
However, Laber framed it truthfully. As a member of Amnesty International, she knows
and documented what really happened at that time. She frankly used the word ‘denying’ as
response to what the former president admitted. Indeed, Marcos initially denied knowledge
of human rights violations (Robles, 2016). In 1974, he proclaimed in a televised address
that “No one, but no one was tortured” (Philstar.com, 2018). And, members of the Marcos
family deny that human rights violations happened during the Marcos administration as
well (Vera Files, 2020). Meanwhile, Laber added that “The Government says that as of
May 1975 all but a “mere” 6,000 had been released, but there are many who question that
figure.” In this, she framed that the issues in talks of releasing the detainees are untrue by
laying the words ‘mere’. Mere because it is not satisfying that over 50,000, only 6,000 had
been released. So, she laid another thought by stating “but there are many who question
that figure” because as a part of Amnesty International, for her, what former president
Marcos stated is just made up. Many people question that figure because they were missing
in the hands of the military personnel. Even innocent people were abducted, disappeared
and went missing (Chua, 2012). The horrors, on the other hand, continue to haunt those
tortured and victimized under the regime. Families of those who disappeared taking it on
their shoulders to carry the great warring fight for justice (BusinessMirror, 2016).

Conversely, in the last part of her article, she reveals the reason why the former
president allowed the events to occur under his regime. She stated that “President Marcos
would like to project an image of legitimacy and responsiveness to the needs of his people.”
In this, she framed that the former president sees the system in his regime as a response to
the needs of the people. However, ‘project an image of legitimacy’ on the other hand shows
the president’s desire. As the framing continued that “If worldwide attention is focused
upon the suffering of political prisoners in Philippine detention centers, he may be forced
to institute reforms that are no longer token, but real.” Meaning, the former president is
creating an image for the world by declaring martial law, he wants to show that he is a
legitimate president. In the proclamation in 1972, Marcos said martial law was not a
military takeover, but a necessary action to save the Philippines from rebellion and
communist overthrow. It was, in his own words, a prelude “to our dream of a new society
- a society of peace, order and reformed politics for a brighter Philippines”
(BusinessMirror, 2016) However, it is not what the world sees but the tortures and suffering
of political prisoners. Laber also framed the probability that the ‘he may’ or the former
president will create a reform to change his image. That is the reason why the reform –
although true, is not a ‘token’ for the Filipino, because the reform is just for his own sake.

All in all, Jeri Laber framed most of the tortures that happened under the Marcos
regime. As a part of Amnesty International, she knew that the truth lies in the voices of the
victims. Having the report of interviews, she knows what should be framed in her article
in order for the readers to enlighten about the suffering. Above all, no doubt, Marcos built
infrastructures that continue to benefit Filipinos today, but behind these were thousands of
human-rights violations, forced disappearances, deaths and corruption (BusinessMirror,
2016). The 14-year period in Philippine history is remembered for the administration's
record of human rights abuses (McCoy, 1999).

Foregrounding

This part will present what the author, Jeri Laber chose to emphasize through
examining the content of her article entitled ‘Philippines Torture’. In her article, there were
issues she chose to emphasize, some of these issues are the tortures, the victims and the
oppressors.

Laber showed an example or an illustration on how some of the victims suffered in

the hands of the military under the Marcos regime. In her article she shared the story of
Perla Somonod and the protestant pastor and how they were in the hands of military torture.
She states, “Perla Somonod, pregnant at the time of her arrest, was made to lie clasping a

5
block of Ice on her stomach until her baby died. A Protestant pastor, arrested in March
1974 and still under detention, was forced to drink his own urine.” She highlights these
stories to serve as proof that tortures exist and it did not consider the victims background
at all, as long as they have been said that they were against the government system. This
also emphasizes how a military personnel can be so ruthless to the people just to get what
they want. Laber put focus on sharing the stories of the victims because she wanted to
emphasize the human rights violations under Marcos regime.

Moreover, she also stated that “Anyone who opposes the government policies is
vulnerable to arrest, and, without the right to due process of law, indefinite confinement;
torture appears to be almost a routine part of the detention procedure.” It was emphasized
in the article because during the Marcos regime, all persons who are subject of rebellion
and insurrection will be arrested. The military units assigned to implement martial law were
given a list of 400 individuals to arrest, consisting mostly of outspoken critics of Ferdinand
Marcos' administration (Magno, 1998). It was stated in the article that “Among those
detained under martial law are members of the opposition party, former Congressmen,
workers, students, farmers, journalists and clergymen.” Victims were tortured and
mutilated before their bodies were dumped in various places for the public to discover – a
tactic meant to sow fear among the public (McCoy, 1999). Laber wants to emphasize that
the government under Marcos regime lacks human rights for people are not allowed to
voice out their concerns. Then, those who are detained will surely experience torture in
the hand of military personnel, for it became a part of the procedure to make the prisoners
admit they are opposed to the government.

On the other hand, a contrasting statement was being emphasized as well in Laber’s
article as she said “The Government also insists that it has extended “humane and decent
treatment to detainees.” Allegations of torture are “highly exaggerated,” according to
official spokesmen, and the cases that have been reported are aberrations that are being
corrected.” She highlighted the issue of the former president’s party denying the tortures
in detention as well as the report of Amnesty International. She used to highlight the word
‘insist’ to show firmly that she opposes or disagrees with what the other party stated. This
also shows that the party of former president Marcos is opposed or disagree to what they
have concluded in the report. Clearly, Laber emphasized that she disagrees with the
“humane and decent treatment to detainees” utterance of the official spokesperson of
Marcos’ party. It also shows her disagreement when the party said that allegations are
“highly exaggerated,” and the records they reported are just aberrations. President Marcos
denied them at first but when they became too many he said they were only isolated cases,
and dismissed them as “aberrations” (Chua, 2012).

To conclude, Jeri Laber focuses on the issues of torture that occur while victims are
in detention, which are denied by the Marcos' party, who claim that it is all an aberration.
However, the corroboration of the victims’ testimonies tell not of aberrations but of a
systematic way of violating human rights. According to Ninoy Aquino (1984), these
inhumane acts “tell a tale of premeditated violence, torture and dehumanization to break
the human spirit, reduce men into whimpering animals….” (Chua, 2012).

Backgrounding

This part will present what author, Jeri Laber chose to de-emphasize, hide or omit
in her article entitled ‘Philippines Torture’. The issues of social and political are hidden or
backgrounded in the discourse because these are serious and have strong realities. Thus,
she chose to de-emphasize to create some distance between herself and the controversial
issue she is discussing, because it might be too dangerous to talk about it explicitly.

In her article there are concepts that are not directly stated, however looking closely
at the lines would probably give another interpretation and conclusion. In her article,

6
though she emphasize the San Juanico Bridge as a bridge and a method of torture, there is
an underlying idea behind her utterance in the lines. As she stated that “A political prisoner
subjected to the “San Juanico bridge” is forced to lie with his naked body suspended
between two beds and is beaten and kicked in the stomach and thighs whenever he sags or
falls.” In this line, Laber state the connection of the San Juanico Bridge structure to the
torture, however did not state that the concepts of the torture is similar to the idea of the
‘bridge’ or the structure. As we read the lines, “naked body suspended between two beds”,
we can conclude that the naked body of the prisoner is the bridge and the two beds where
the body is suspended are the islands, mainly the Samar and Leyte. The torture method is
called as such because the victim is made to lie between two beds, and form a "bridge,"
(Gonzales, 2021). She clearly framed the point how the torture is done, however did not
state that the torture’s concept is from the idea of built bridge under Marcos administration.
With this being said, tortures are from the idea of Marcos and his party, for he even named
the tortures on the ‘bridge’ that he had made under his administration. He indeed showed
the legitimate image he wanted to create as said on the middle part of this paper, because
even in his methods of torture, his legit works are the legit names of the suffering.

In her article, she also mentioned stories, these stories are the highlight. And,
because they are emphasized fully, the background is not noticeable. She stated in her
article that, “Perla Somonod, pregnant at the time of her arrest, was made to lie clasping
a block of Ice on her stomach until her baby died. A Protestant pastor, arrested in March
1974 and still under detention, was forced to drink his own urine.” The hidden issue here
is, the two mentioned persons are the representation of the people in the society. They both
have different backgrounds, but these appear to be meaningless for the tortures. Perla
Somonod who dedicated herself to serving the Faith, teaching people for the attainment of
World Peace joined a movement that left scars on her being. She was even hoping that one
day she would be able to get the financial reward for victims of atrocities during the Marcos
Regime. That wish died with her, though (Baluyos, 2013). As said, Somonod is like the
other people during that regime who joined movements to speak up their concerns and for
reforms, but they were tortured anyway. On the other hand, Somonod also represents the
women at this time, it means that women also get ruthlessly tortured. And her way of being
tortured represents the killing of innocents done by the militaries under Marcos regime.
Meanwhile, the protestant pastor on the other hand represents the religious sectors of the
society. It depicts that even religious men or any member or leaders of the church are
tortured once they are detained. This shows that in the Marcos regime, the church is also
one of their enemies.

“90 percent of all political detainees have been tortured.” In this line, Laber de-
emphasize other cases, like the ones who are killed and missing. She only state that there
90%, which means that there a lot of political detainees have been tortured, because those
who are killed and missing are tortured as well as she said that “torture appears to be
almost a routine part of the detention procedure.” To conclude, the tortures in the
Philippines speak only one truth. There is no democracy in the country. As what Laber
stated in the article “Anyone who opposes Government policies is vulnerable to arrest.” If
anyone who speaks up their voice towards the government is suffering, then there is no
equality at all. A democratic country should possess an equality in its people, the idea that
everyone should have the same opportunity to influence the decisions that affect people in
society (Annan, n.d.).

Underlying Ideologies

This part will present the underlying political ideologies through examining the
lines. Obviously, the ideologies of Jeri Laber are in defense of the human rights violations,
but the ideologies of former president Marcos and/or the Marcos regime will be portrayed
according to what the article is provided.

7
 On 21 September 1972, Marcos declared martial law to “save the republic and
reform our society.” The president justified martial law by saying that the society, “by its
unresponsiveness to popular needs, had lost the right to exist” (Chua, 2012). In order to
achieve the new society that the former president is visualizing he launched a massive
militarization campaign. As stated in the article, “When President Ferdinand E. Marcos
imposed martial law in 1972, he gave the armed forces the power to arrest and detain
indefinitely all persons suspected of insurrection or rebellion. President Ferdinand Marcos
imposed discipline, and everyone was afraid of him, there was totally a peace and order.
Those who became victims of torture, are really rebels and communists, enemies of the
state (Chua, 2012). These lines reveal an ideology of former president Marcos, he showed
it by his proclamation of Martial law. When martial law is in effect, the military
commander of the country has unlimited authority to make and enforce laws. This is where
Marcos went further to assume all governing powers, excluded civilian courts, and
systematically replaced the 1935 Constitution with the 1973 Constitution for his own ends
(GOV PH, n.d.). As stated in the article, “The Congress has been abolished, the judiciary
rendered ineffective, and the President and his military leaders now rule without
restraint.” Marcos control over all the powers, thus what he had executed during that time
is authoritarianism where he became a dictator. In government, authoritarianism denotes
any political system that concentrates power in the hands of a leader that is not
constitutionally responsible to the body of the people. Authoritarian leaders often exercise
power arbitrarily and without regard to existing bodies of law (The Editors of Encyclopedia
Britannica). In short, Marcos the dictator responded blind to authority and opposed
individual freedom of thought and action as opposed to democracy. To claim, according to
Asian Geographic Editorial Team (2021), as president, he adopted “Constitutional
Authoritarianism” under the New Society Movement, which essentially allowed him to
rule as a dictator under martial law from 1972 until 1981, and keep most of his legal
authority until he was forced to step down in 1986.

“President Marcos would like to project an image of legitimacy and responsiveness

to the needs of his people.” Since he wants to create an image, all of the allegations and
proofs are being denied. As we read these lines again, “The Government also insists that
it has extended “humane and decent treatment to detainees.” Allegations of torture are
“highly exaggerated,” according to official spokesmen, and the cases that have been
reported are aberrations that are being corrected.” Marcos’ side neglects the truth for they
hide the truth that he is a dictator and there are tortures happening in detention centers.
Indeed, Filipinos hurting and killing fellow Filipinos. The brutal side of the Marcos
dictatorship brought us shame and many of the victims of these human rights violations
were young people and student leaders (Chua, 2012).

Finally, in the guise of apparent peace and order, the dark face of martial law can
be found. Many human rights violations occurred during the regimes of authoritarians and
dictators. Democracy was not saved; rather, it was extinguished. Human rights violations
and repression of dissent are the most compelling evidence that the Philippines did not
have democracy during the Marcos dictatorship (Chua, 2012). During the Marcos regime,
brutality overpowered the principles of individual autonomy and equality.

Conclusion

To summarize, Jeri Laber's 'Philippines Torture' defines the torture that occurred in
the Philippines during the Marcos regime. Her article, as a material for analysis, is deeply
rooted in her opposition to human rights violations and confirmations of political detainees’
suffering.

In framing, she laid out all of the methods of torture, the president's proclamation,
and its denial of the allegations by affirming it unambiguously. As if she is certain of what
she is going to write. And, as a human rights advocate, she understands what to frame and

8
how to frame the issues, which is to make human rights issues clear to the audience. As a
result, she framed Marcos' regime as an account of human rights violations. In terms of
foregrounding, she emphasized stories of detainees' sufferings at the hands of the military
in order to draw attention to how the regime is ruthless and illegal. On the other hand,
behind those she highlighted are other untold or backgrounded stories and ideas. Some of
these issues are stated in this manner because they are too dangerous to discuss explicitly.
Finally, her human rights activism paved the way for the identification of former President
Marcos' underlying political ideology. She demonstrated that the Marcos administration is
authoritarianism and dictatorship because it disregards the concept of democracy and
pursues violations of human rights.

The violations are heavily emphasized, but the other party's denial will stand in
stark contrast. This article, on the other hand, explains the dark side of the Marcos regime.

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