Page Title
David Martinez: Activist Forever
Heidi M. Pascual*
Publisher & Editor
* 2006 Journalist of the Year
for the State of Wisconsin
(U.S.-SBA)
was granted “independence” by the U.S. and became a democratic republic, with direct elections for national officials
held every four years.

In the ‘60s, student activism was very strong in the Philippines. A popular Ilocano lawyer (from Ilocos Norte, a province in
the northern part of the Philippines) who became congressman and then Senate president, was elected president in
1964, beating incumbent President Diosdado Macapagal (father of the country’s  president in 2005, Gloria Macapagal-
Arroyo). Marcos won his second term in 1968, amid domestic and global unrest and movements for civil and human
rights. Students and labor leaders marched and filled the streets not only in Metro Manila, but also in many urban areas
throughout the country. Protestors demanded school reforms, nationalization of public utilities, dismantling of U.S.
military bases, genuine land reform, an end to graft and corruption, and non-engagement in the Vietnam War. Marcos
declared martial law in September 1972, a few months before the scheduled national election, rounded up his political
opponents and critics and strengthened the military. Marcos was in power until the People Power Revolution in February
1986 toppled his regime.

In part 1, David Martinez talked about his past, what led him to his exile in the United States after the declaration of
martial law by the late Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos in 1972, and why he left the Movement for a Free
Philippines (MFP), the single largest anti-dictatorship group, which was led by the late Sen. Raul Manglapus and later by
the late Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino. Ninoy Aquino was the husband of Corazon Aquino who became president after
the People Power Revolution at EDSA (Epifanio de los Santos Avenue) in Manila in February 1986. He was assassinated
on the tarmac of Manila International Airport as he was returning from the United States on Aug. 21, 1983. (A Marcos-
government investigation led by jurist Corazon Agrava found that Ninoy Aquino’s assassination resulted from a military
conspiracy; however, the Sandiganbayan, a high court prosecuting government officials for crimes, ruled out any
involvement of Marcos’ military.)
   
In part 2 of this installment, Martinez describes the circumstance that changed his perception about Ninoy Aquino’s
leadership and discusses at length his revolutionary proposal to divide the Philippines into five nations, as contained in
his latest book, “A Country of Our Own: Partitioning the Philippines.”

David Martinez also explained why he moved away from Ninoy Aquino, the late husband of former Philippine President
Cory Aquino. Martinez said, “I felt it was wrong for a general  to abandon a bleeding soldier in the field,” in reference  to
Victor Lovely, Jr., a Filipino American who nearly lost his life when his bomb exploded in his YMCA room in Manila
during the chaotic 1980s. Lovely was one of Martinez’ best friends who, according to Martinez, had been sent by Ninoy
Aquino himself to destabilize the Marcos regime. Martinez claimed that Aquino didn’t help Lovely’s family in the U.S.A.
during Lovely’s detention in the Philippines. When confronted about it, Aquino allegedly got angry with Martinez and
reminded him that all soldiers are dispensable. Aquino himself was assassinated on the tarmac of Manila International
Airport on Aug. 21, 1983. After  the People Power Revolution led by the late Jaime Cardinal Sin, the Catholic Archbishop
of Manila, ousted Marcos from power in February 1986, Cory Aquino became president. Martinez said that a lot of his
friends in the U.S were given positions in the Aquino government, including those who styled themselves as anti-Marcos
but who, in reality, were simply looking after their own interests. Martinez himself decided to stay in the U.S. He rejected
the Aquino government’s offer to be the governor of Negros Oriental.

Martinez has recently written a book titled “A Country of Our Own: Partitioning the Philippines,” and told this writer why he
is proposing to divide the Philippines into five distinct nations: Cordillera, Luzon, the Visayas, Mindanao, and
Bangsamoro.


“In the end, the book proposes that a referendum be held [in the Philippines] in the year 2007 to coincide with the May
general elections,” David Martinez said, “to ask the  five regions of the Philippines whether they wish to retain their
political ties to what we call ‘Imperial Manila,’ or centrist government.”  Martinez went on to explain that in reality, it is the
political dynasties that give the political structure in Manila its support; hence, the real power is in the provinces. He
enumerated family names such as Chavit-Singsons, Crisologos, Levistes, Cuencas, and Montelibanos, and their heirs
or scions, who now occupy positions in Congress or in the media.

“They are the voices and faces of real power,” Martinez said matter-of-factly. “In exchange, what the central government in
Manila does is to provide these regional or provincial powers with protection, including military protection when
necessary, and concessions, such as logging or mining permits, for instance.” He called this relationship “parasitic”
and said it has never changed since the time of the Spaniards. “The datu in Cebu gives his fealty to the viceroy in Manila;
in return, he gets the blessings of the church and the protection of the guardia sibil.”

Ominous Trend

Martinez said that the Philippines “stands on the brink of a precipice today and is in danger of imploding within the next
two years,” because it will be financially bankrupt. “There will be no more money to pay our foreign debt, oil flow will stop,
and when that happens, electricity will stop, jeepneys won’t be able to run, the media can’t print newspapers, and TV
and radio stations will run out of gas,” he said. Martinez likened the situation to Argentina’s: “Except that 74 percent of
Argentina are Argentines; the problem in the Philippines is that there are 169 tribes, and because of that I fear we would
be like Somalia, where every locality would be ruled by the guy with most guns – naked warlordism.” This is why he is
proposing the breakup of the Philippines into five nations.

Enumerating several examples of countries that split up into independent states for political, ideological, or religious
reasons, Martinez argued that the manner of separation is no longer a question, that it could be peaceful or violent.  “In
the end, self-determination is sacred and inalienable,” he stressed.  “You simply cannot stop a people from leaving an
association, especially in a multicultural state where it is against their will.”

Asked whether he has gauged the pulse of the Filipino people on his proposal, Martinez said he was in the Philippines
for a year about four years ago, and he felt that more and more people are looking at partition as an option, considering
the worsening situation nowadays. “You must remember that under the current system, for every tax peso raised by the
city of Cebu, for instance [and] sent to Manila (as does every province), no more than 15 centavos goes back to the city or
the province; 85 centavos stays in Manila,” he said. He proposes the adoption of the American way, in which all taxes are
put together and only a quarter goes to the federal government. The states, he observed, have their own constitutions
and local governments that take care of public utilities and peace and order with the 75 percent of the taxes that they
retain.

Martinez questions the immense power of the Philippine president that covers even the smallest administrative
functions. He questions the concept of Bagumbayan or “new nation,” which has created a fictitious identity called the
“Filipino” and a state called “the Philippines,” whose borders had been defined by foreigners. “All we did was inherit the
map that the colonists gave us,” he said. “And we had to embrace two commandments: political centrism and cultural
uniformity.”  The latter was made possible through the imposition of one language, “Filipino,” at the expense of non-
dominant tongues, Martinez added.

Reach of Martinez’ message

“When the student is ready, the teacher will come, Martinez echoed a saying. “It’s a pity that people don’t like messages.
Nobody wants to be told what’s good for them or what to do, especially by a stranger, in the form of a book.” He lamented
that in a society that loves comic books and movies, people do not want to read, because “words do not have that
capacity to move.” However, these are desperate times, he said, so people will be compelled to look for alternatives.
“Tig-iisa tayo ng bangka (One boat for each of us),” Martinez said.

Martinez will travel to the Philippines again this year to speak to university groups and discuss his proposal. “My friends
say I’m playing with my life,” he said. “But I have a philosophy of life: It’s short; it’s borrowed. If you lose it, you might as
well lose it while pursuing a noble goal. I don’t want to lose it sitting in a wheelchair watching the sun go down.”
Editor's Note: We are re-publishing this article (printed in 2006, AWiz) in view of recent
events in Mindanao, particularly the armed conflict between the military and the MNLF
faction under Nur Misuari (the group that demands secession from the republic to create its
own separate country). David Martinez' book calls for a divided Philippines.

Part 3

by Heidi M. Pascual

Background:
The Philippines is a Southeast Asian nation made up of more than 7, 100 islands. Its main
island groupings are Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. It is the only Christian nation in this
part of the globe, and 85 percent of its population is Roman Catholic. Mindanao has
historically remained Muslim, especially its southernmost part and had consistently repelled
any invasion from foreign forces.  The country has a long colonial history, first as a colony of
Spain, then under the United States as a commonwealth. In 1946, the Philippines