Six Martial Law Heroes Honored

THE BANTAYOG ng mga Bayani on November 29 honored six men and women for the courage they showed in fighting, at great risk to their lives, the dictatorial government of the late Ferdinand Marcos.

The six honored were student activists Jennifer "Jingjing" Cariño (Baguio City/Ifugao), Armando "Mandrake" Palabay (La Union/Abra), Jessica Sales (Quezon City/Los Baños), and Manuel Bautista (Quezon City/Quezon province), along with businessman Jaime V. Ongpin and historian Renato Constantino.

The four students all came from the University of the Philippines and died
or disappeared from 1974 to 1977, the darkest years of martial rule.

Ceremonies honoring the six martyrs and heroes were held Nov. 29, at
3 p.m., at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani shrine at the corner of EDSA and
Quezon Avenue.

The rites included the unveiling of a section of the Wall of
Remembrance on which the names of the six have been inscribed, adding them to 113 other illustrious names that include Ninoy Aquino and Edgar Jopson.

The Bantayog ng mga Bayani Foundation Inc. was organized in 1986 to nurture the memory of those who have "given their lives for the cause of freedom and justice."

Chaired by former Senate President Jovito Salonga, Bantayog undertakes research and documentation on the lives of these exemplary Filipinos, building up an archive not likely to be found anywhere else.

This year's celebration included the laying of the foundation of Balay Bayani, a building that will house the foundation's archive and library containing martial-law materials.