My Experience as National Secretariat of Social Action (NASSA) Youth Coordinator: 1976-1977

In June 1976, at age 21, I became the “youth coordinator” of the National Secretariat of Social Action (NASSA). NASSA was the social action arm of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). In this capacity, NASSA coordinated the activities of the various Social Action Centers (SAC) which operated under the 70+ Roman Catholic dioceses in the country.

There were three regional offices under NASSA: Luzon Secretariat of Social Action (LUSSA), Visayas Secretariat of Social Action (VISSA), and Mindanao-Sulu Secretariat of Social Action (MISSSA).

NASSA Youth Consultation

About two months before I got the job, I attended a “youth consultation” sponsored by NASSA. It was held at the NASSA headquarters along F.B. Harrison street in Manila, just opposite the Daughters of St. Paul compound. The purpose of the consultation was to get an idea of the youth situation, activities and organizations wise, almost four years after the declaration of martial law. Fr. Luis “Louie” Hechanova C.Ss.R, executive secretary of NASSA, presided.  

Youth and students’ organizations of all persuasions were the hardest hit by martial law, because the young were the most vocal against the Marcos government. NASSA, as a part of its calling, was very interested in reviving youth activities, so it decided to call the meeting.

In attendance were representatives of student organizations from, as far as I remember, De La Salle University (DLSU), Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU), University of Santo Tomas (UST), St. Scholastica’s College (SSC) and University of the Philippines (UP). I attended as a representative of the UP Student Committee for Student Rights and Welfare (SCSRW).

Also attending were members of Young Christian Workers (YCW), Student Catholic Action (SCA), and UP Student Catholic Action (UPSCA). Priests and nuns who were active in student organizing were also there. I remember Fr. Efren Dato from the Diocesan Youth Formation Center (DYFC) of Malolos, Fr. Robert Espenilla from Archdiocese of Manila SCA, Fr. Antonio Unson, chaplain of UPSCA, Fr. Tadgh Kennelly SSC and Fr. Pat Raleigh SSC, both from Archdiocese of Manila SCA, Fr. Jose Blanco SJ, who was deeply involved in student organizing in Indonesia, and Sr. Mary John Mananzan OSB, Dean of SSC. Sr. Mary John brought along her officer for student affairs, Sophia Lizares. 

NASSA Youth Desk

After an extensive sharing of experiences, insights, and opinions, the consultation unsurprisingly learned that youth activism had been severely impaired by martial law.   Having acknowledged this fact, the consultation made a commitment to revive the diverse youth and student movements represented in the meeting.  It also adopted the vision of the Filipino youth reassuming its influential role in national affairs before the martial law.

As a first step, NASSA, through Fr. Hechanova, committed to setting up a youth desk, to be staffed by a youth coordinator, and to be based in NASSA’s Justice and Peace Department (JPD). Fr. Louie stressed that the job of the NASSA youth coordinator was two-fold: to get an idea of the youth situation in the dioceses, and to act as NASSA liaison officer in all matters concerning diocesan youth organizations.  

I applied for the position, and was chosen from among three applicants. I was interviewed by Fr. Louie Hechanova and Bishop Julio Labayen, who was then NASSA’s chairman. I was recommended to Fr. Louie Hechanova by Tess Lioanag, who was from JPD. I signed a one-year contract starting June 1, 1976, with a starting salary of PhP 500.

  
Social Action

“Social action” was the all-inclusive term used by the Catholic Church to mean its numerous activities to uplift the condition of the poor and needy in the light of the gospel, and the papal social encyclicals.

The pertinent papal social encyclicals in the Seventies were: Rerum Novarum,  Quadragesimo Anno, Mater et Magistra, Pacem in Terris, Gaudium et Spes, Populorum Progressio, Octogesima Adveniens, and Justice in the World.

The Church social encyclicals started coming out late in the 19^th century when it confronted the Industrial Revolution and its new system of production, social and political relations, and property ownership. The encyclicals championed the dignity of labor, the right of workers to form unions, and denounced the control by a few of society’s wealth. 

Starting with Pope Leo XIII, the popes have used encyclicals to tackle what they see as economic and social injustices affecting humanity. The Church has justified this action by stating: “The Church makes a moral judgment about economic and social matters when the fundamental rights of the person or the salvation of souls requires it." (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2420)

From 1976 to 1977,  I worked for the CBCP as Youth Coordinator of NASSA and as a consultant for the CBCP Youth Committee under Bishops Jose Sorra, Felix Perez, and Fernando Capalla. I am particularly proud of the CBCP Youth Survey of 1977, which was the first comprehensive survey of young people under martial law. Thanks to Prof. Archimedes Carlos of the UP Department of Sociology

Social Action Centers

A Catholic diocese was roughly equivalent to a Philippine province, with the big ones being called archdioceses. A diocese was headed by a bishop, while an archdiocese was led by an archbishop. An SAC, in turn, was managed by a Social Action Director (SAD), often a young priest in his late twenties or early thirties.

The activities of a typical SAC were the following: Basic Christian Communities, which was a kind of community organizing effort, Justice and Peace, which looked after human rights cases and related matters, Relief and Rehabilitation, which helped the victims of calamities, Family Life, which fostered stable marriages and child education, Alay Kapwa, which was a program to assist the poor, and Youth Formation, which organized both students and out-of-school-youth towards socially relevant activities.     

The Tasks of NASSA-JPD

NASSA-JPD at that time was in charge of defending the rights of political detainees by representing them in the courts, and through negotiations or liaison with the military. Common concerns were arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial executions (salvaging), and torture. It had a team of lawyers for this purpose. I remember Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel, and a certain Atty. Malonzo.

JPD also had a trade union coordinator in the person of Fr. Ted Añana, and a community organization expert by the name of Oscar “Oca” Francisco. The head of JPD at that time was the distinguished Jesuit, Fr. Pacifico Ortiz.  

Among Fr. Ortiz’ distinctions were: being spiritual adviser to President Manuel L. Quezon, and serving as delegate to the 1971 Constitutional Convention.  As head of JPD, Fr. Ortiz also co-chaired the Church-Military Liaison Committee (CMLC), which discussed cases of political detainees. Our efficient clerk-typist was Edith Torres.

I Make Friends

JPD also had a staffer, Jess Agustin, who was in charge of conducting seminars and doing research into “liberation theology.” However, Jess did not hold office at the NASSA headquarters. He was based at the Loyola House of Studies of the Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City. NASSA assigned him there at the request of theologian Fr. Carlos Abesamis S.J., who was assisting NASSA in this field.

Jess Agustin and I became the best of friends. I often visited him in Loyola Heights, because I asked him to help in giving social awareness seminars to diocesan youth organizations. Jess was particularly adept at conducting “structural analysis” seminars.  It was the safe way of introducing the youth to socially relevant and nationalist activism.

Other NASSA staffers with whom I developed lasting friendships were: Delle Tiongson, Melba Vidal, Tonette Garcia and Fr. Demetrio Imperial, all skilled analysts from the projects department, and Mano Gonzales, editor of the NASSA publication NASSA News.   

One of the first things that I did as NASSA youth coordinator was attend a regional youth consultation, organized by VISSA.   The purpose of the meeting was, of course, to get a more detailed youth situation in the regional and provincial levels. It was chaired by VISSA executive secretary Fr. Frank Gonzales. It was held in Dumaguete City.

Regional Youth Consultations

During my one-year NASSA stint, LUSSA did not hold a youth consultation of its own. I now surmise that it did not consider youth affairs as a priority area. MISSSA, for its part, held a youth consultation, but I was not able to attend. They did, however, send me a detailed report, written by the MISSSA executive director Fr. Orlando Carvajal.

I also tried to communicate directly with the different social action directors (SAD), to get additional inputs on the youth situation in the parishes. This did not prove to be very successful, as only a few answered my letters. Fr. Louie advised me that I was sort of breaking protocol by writing to the SAD’s shotgun style. I was putting them off, said he, which included the bishops, whom I copy-furnished with my letters.

I was horrified at committing such a lapse in decorum. I realized the church network was a much different world from UP, where I cut my teeth in activism. At any rate, Fr. Louie suggested that I make friends with selected SADs and youth leaders, and make diocesan visits. This was the proper, though tougher way, he told me.

For the above purpose, I made it a point to attend various LUSSA, VISSA, and MISSSA meetings where I could meet and talk with the SADs. After I had befriended some whom I thought were of the right political leanings, I told them I would visit their centers. All of them enthusiastically agreed to host me. They even requested me to give social awareness seminars to their youth, which I did so zealously. I even brought along a team from UP to assist me. 

Social Awareness Seminars and Fact-Finding Meetings

All in all, during my term in NASSA, I must have conducted about five such seminars, involving an average of about 30 young people each, with many of them repeating the seminars several times over. We called these seminars "echo" seminars.  I felt that after being cooked up in Diliman for 5 years, I was seeing the "real" world. At any rate, it was great to travel all over the country, all expenses paid.   

In the youth centers, the fact-finding discussions with the social action directors and youth coordinators were mainly about: How many youth organizations are there in the parish? What is the orientation or nature of these organizations? What are the activities of these organizations? What is the “level of awareness” of the youth in the area, in such things as: concern for the poor, participation in politics, martial law, the social role of the Church, and youth activities in general? Lastly, where there cases of human rights violations committed by the military against youth organizers?

A Typical NASSA Staff Meeting

My Obsession with the Youth and Students Movement

My obsession with the youth and students movement was a legacy of my days as a student organizer in the University of the Philippines, from 1974 to mid-1976. In late 1975, things started to get tough in UP, security wise. The high point came early in January 1976, when the Philippine military, in one vicious campaign, rounded up UP student leaders, and other anti-dictatorship personalities.  I was lucky enough to escape the raids.

In May, 1976, I was informed that agents were hot on my trail, ready to arrest me when the opportunity came. Starting that time, to avoid capture, I decided to be less publicly seen, like not frequenting anymore my haunts in UP. I even learned that I already had a “dossier” more than two inches thick in some government intelligence unit.

Institutional Support from NASSA

However, my preoccupation, however messianic, of reinstating the once exalted student movement was as strong as ever. This was my mindset when I decided to join NASSA as youth coordinator. I needed a strong institutional defender to continue my passion of youth and student organizing.

NASSA seemed to fit the bill. It had the formidable institutional backing of the CBCP, which made its employees less vulnerable to arrest.  Secondly, the NASSA staffers and leaders I met during the youth consultation were very friendly and accommodating. Finally, I was inspired by NASSA’s principles, which hewed to the political program I was espousing.

NASSA, in those days, was in the forefront of the anti-martial law struggle in the Philippines. It was doing this after the pre-martial law opposition, politicians and student activists all, had been locked up by President Marcos and were largely inutile. The center of gravity of the opposition to Marcos had shifted from the student sector to the religious sector. In this endeavor, NASSA found company in the Association of Major Religious Superiors in the Philippines (AMRSP). I would say AMRSP was more militant and assertive.

NASSA struggled against martial law albeit subtly and judiciously, through carefully worded statements, dialogues with the military, legal assistance to political detainees, and low profile support for anti-martial law projects. However, NASSA could be militant once in a while. It was a supporter of the historic La Tondeña strike in December 1975. In fact, the first time I saw Fr. Louie Hechanova was when he pledged support for the strike with a fiery speech at a Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP) rally at the Vinzons Hall roof garden in UP Diliman.

Bishop Julio Labayen and Fr. Luis Hechanova

NASSA was in a position to do so, because, being an appendage of the Catholic Church, the Marcos government hesitated to arrest its members, lest it invite international condemnation.

Moreover, the leadership of NASSA was known for their integrity and stature in the religious community. Its executive director was Fr. Louie Hechanova, 35 years old, an outstanding Redemptorist, an alumnus of the Asian Institute of Management, and a member of a prominent Ilonggo clan which controlled the shipping concern Negros Navigation.

Two of Fr. Louie’s brothers were even more famous than him: one was the whiz kid Rufino “Feny” Hechanova, who was the young finance secretary to President Diosdado Macapagal, and the other was Rafael "Paeng" Hechanova, who was a famed Ateneo basketball player who played for the YCO Painters and the Philippine team to the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.

The other NASSA pillar was its chairman, the Rev. Julio Xavier Labayen, the esteemed Carmelite bishop from the Prelature of Infanta. Bishop Labayen started it all: he was the first social action director in the Philippines ever. He was among the first to preach the importance of the church’s  “preferential option for the poor.” This dictum was first enunciated in 1891 by Pope Leo XIII in his famous encyclical “Rerum Novarum” and elaborated in subsequent papal encyclicals.

The CBCP National Youth Survey Project

The highlight of my job at NASSA was the CBCP National Youth Survey project. It happened that towards the end of my term, around April, 1977, the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Youth Apostolate (Commission on Youth) needed a detailed knowledge of the situation of the youth (ages 15-25) in the Philippines. It also happened that NASSA was the CBCP agency that had the most advanced work in youth affairs, namely, its youth desk that I was occupying.

The CBCP Commission on Youth was composed of three bishops --- Bishop Jose C. Sorra of the Diocese of Legazpi, who was the chairman,  Bishop Felix P. Perez of the Diocese of Imus, and Bishop Fernando R. Capalla of the Archdiocese of Davao. The three bishops wanted to know in detail the Philippine youth condition, in time for the 1978 Synod of Bishops in Rome which they were attending.

The CBCP Commission on Youth communicated to the various CBCP agencies involved in youth affairs, and one of these was, of course, NASSA. Fr. Louie Hechanova must have informed the commission that NASSA already had conducted a youth consultation the year before, and had a fully functional youth desk with a full-time youth coordinator.

Which would probably explain why Fr. Louie Hechanova surprised me by instructing me to attend a meeting of the CBCP Youth Commission. I attended the meeting, and there I met the three bishops, and the CBCP Secretary, Fr. Teodoro Buhain of the Archdiocese of Manila. It was held at the CBCP headquarters in Intramuros. Since I felt awkward in the company of CBCP top brass, I requested Sr. Mary John Mananzan, who was a friend, to accompany me.

The Bishops Ask Me to Conduct a Survey

At the end of the meeting, which lasted about two hours, the bishops asked me if I could contact someone in UP whom they could commission to conduct a nationwide survey into the Philippine youth situation. I had earlier told them that I graduated from UP, and was a former UP student activist. They promised that UP could use the CBCP national network of dioceses, which was intact and undisturbed by martial law. They also said that money and logistics were not problems. I jumped at this precious opportunity.

Aside from getting a scientifically determined situation of the Philippine youth, here was a chance to expand my network of contacts outside that of NASSA’s system. The thousands of survey respondents would automatically be my contacts.  I had imagined that there were scores more of youth organizations that existed apart from those reached by NASSA. This meant more youth organizations that can be activated, or made to undergo social awareness seminars.

To undertake the nationwide survey, I contacted my friend, Prof. Archimedes “Archie” Carlos of the UP Diliman Department of Sociology. He gladly accepted the project. He was to be assisted by another UP sociology faculty, Prof. Dan Lapid. I was to be a consultant.

UP Sociology Department

Profs. Archie Carlos and Dan Lapid prepared a research proposal, with the budget at PhP 350,000. When we presented the proposal to the bishops and Fr. Buhain, they approved it right away. There were to be about two thousand respondents, and nine survey areas. We then asked for a list of dioceses and their respective bishops. These would be used in making the sampling design, we told the bishops.

The project hired about thirty UP undergraduate students as research assistants. About the same number were hired as coders. We needed coders because we were using an IBM 360. Our chief coder was Naida Ganchero.   

Not accidentally, these students were all activists. In the initial meetings, I explained to them the two aims of the youth survey: that of knowing the Philippine youth situation and gathering contacts. Of course, I added, they were also free to discuss current events with the respondents: we would not let this rare chance slip by. Suffice it to say that all of them unreservedly agreed to participate.

We divided the group into three teams: Luzon Team, Visayas Team, and Mindanao Team. The teams were further divided into three sub teams each. In June 1977, the teams fanned out to the nine survey areas, for a two month data gathering. I did my data gathering in Catbalogan, Samar, with friends Romulo Quimbo Jr. and Christine Manansala. I also joined the data gathering in Malolos, Bulacan,  Laoag, Ilocos Norte, and Misamis Oriental.

In the middle of the data gathering period, around August 1977, the whole research group gathered for two days at Patria de Cebu in Cebu City.  We did so to compare notes, consolidate the data, and share experiences. At the end of the data gathering period, the group met again, in a beach resort in Nasugbu, Batangas.  

We Present the Survey Report to the Bishops

We wrote the survey report for about two months, in August and September 1977. Each team was represented in the writing group. I remember we burned the midnight oil at the residence of one of the researchers, Claire Miravite, in Philam Life Homes Quezon City. We were all very excited that we were writing the first comprehensive assessment of the youth situation in the Philippines since the declaration of martial law. 

The main findings of the survey were: a) five years after the declaration of martial law, student organizations and publications at the college or university level were largely non-existent or inactive, except in the Metro-Manila area; b) parish based youth groups were the most numerous form of youth organization; and c) the government’s censorship of mass media and student newspapers had lowered the social awareness of tertiary students and out-of-school youth. (OSY)      

We presented the survey report to the bishops in October or November 1977, with Fr. Leonardo Z. Legaspi from University of Santo Tomas (UST) as critique. I remember Fr. Legaspi aggressively scrutinizing the report and giving Archie, Dan, and me a hard time.

As for the organizations that we contacted in the survey, I would be coming back to them in the succeeding two years, but in a different capacity. But that’s another story.

All in all, my experience at NASSA as youth coordinator was one of the happiest and rewarding periods of my youth. Happy, because I made so many friends. The reward? It comes from the thought that, through the young Filipinos that I reached, I helped spread the message of freedom around my country. Marcos with his martial law tried to stifle this idea, but failed.

On December 7, 2014, NASSA had its most successful reunion ever at the Browers' residence in Malolos. It was organized by Melba Vidal, Delle Tiongson Browers, and Mano Gonzales, a group fondly called "The Junta" by the NASSAlites. Borrowing from the Junta's emailed description, those in the picture are:

First row on the grass: Alice Pango Ang (N- Finance, worked with Delle at MASAI, now with OIKO Credit), Pangging Santos (M-Projects, now a practising advocate and cook of organic food and active in community mental health services with husband Sonny, they are parents to Anto, long-time soccer coach in UP ), Marilen Abesamis (N-writer-editor, Nassa News, MSPC, body talk practitioner, sister of Fr. Abe, we're waiting for the book), Ceres Doyo (journalist,Philippines Daily Inquirer, NASSA extension extraordinaire)

Second row: Rafael (Doy) Medes (N- Maintenance, famous for his laing, engaged in environmental-friendly actions in Molino, Cavite and husband to Fredes who could not attend), Delle (N Projects, MASAI, retired from OIKO Credit, better half of Jan,  perfect host whose Malolos digs have become the reunion favorite), Nilda Almaden (better half of Caloy Almaden-N, she's back to her first love, teaching), Betty Panganiban (Lito's one, true love, original NASSA Adm staff, still looking good), Sister Lucille Perpinan, SPC (N- name one who does not know her from her days at the  Rural Missionaries, OHD, St. Paul Hospitals everywhere), Remmy Rikken (first among social action workers in early 70's, SAC in Tagum, Davao del Norte with Maryknoll Fr. Tom Marti, PETA, FILIPINA., formerly Executive Director and currently indefatigable Chairperson of the  Presidential Philippine Commission on Women), Sister Luming Torres, ICM (N- Relief and Rehabilitation, originally recruited by Louie H to prepare us for disasters, later part of N's Finance Team and still takes charge of finances for the ICM unit she is part of.  At 89, still visits our dear friend, Maring Feria, every Tuesday)

Third row: Sonny Redor (N-Finance, partner-owner of prestigious accounting firm, recruited on short notice as chief collector and accountant for contributions to pay our caterer's fee, faithful reunion attendee), Lito Panganiban (original N staff, celebrating 43 years of wedded  bliss to Betty Panganiban, together they operate Paraiso Beach Resort in Sariaya, Quezon rumored location of the next reunion), Omi Royandoyan (L-projects, Executive Director, formerly grim and determined, now determined and still devoted to farmers), Roberto, "Beto" Reyes (N-Youth J & P, had the most unforgettable initial flight experience to Cebu with improper instructions from his elders, you can find out his interests and activities on the internet), Mano Gonzales (N- RPD-NASSA News, AIM, OIKO Credit, now free lancer), Chato Sto. Domingo (original L with Sr. Victricia, Edna and Ching, rushed to reunion after attending eldest daughter's graduation from AIM), Fr,. Nonong Pili, L-Executive Secretary, later and still with SPI, Rector of St. Joseph Formation House, Prelature of Infanta), Rolly Libang (better half of Gert, L consultant), Gert Libang (N-Projects, later L, now with Gabriela), Lu Gargarita (L- adm., timed arrival from abroad to attend reunion), Vivian (L- was it Nolasco blame hearing failure to remember her role in LUSSA but glad she's back in the fold), Edna "Tolindoy" Francisco (L original staff,  otherwise known as Oca's better half, still active in Optima and field trip partner with Ching), Jing Gimena (N-RPD-Nassa News, and when she's in RP, field trip partner of Mano ) Angge Dominguez Lahoz (Episcopal Commission on Tribal Filipinos, friend of N after hours, has a Montessori school, promised children (hindi siguro puede dahil overage) and grandchildren of reunionists can study free), Melba (N-retired, currently busy with house repairs), Tonette Garcia (original N staff, she was perhaps 18 years old, turned out to be one of the best union organizers among nurses in the San Francisco Bay Area, recently retired)

Last row (back): Sonny Gonzales (M- projects, also known as the better half of Pangging Santos, organic food advocate, active in promoting community-based mental health services), Ted Borrero (L-Projects and JP ba?, currently works in Phil office (saan na nga?) while Pancho works in international circles), Berry Barraquias (N loyal lawyer and staunch supporter of carless NASSA staff bound for reunions, father of Nenette's co-worker at OPAPP), Caloy Almaden (N-maintenance team and better half of Nilda, loyal attendee at Nassa reunions), Jess Agustin (N- J & P with Fr. Abe, visited Harrison office but mainly holed up at Loyola House of Studies, the much older versions of former NASSA girls commented, he's better looking than in NASSA days, first timer at a NASSA reunion, has been with CCODP (Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace) for many, many years, promised to gift everyone at the reunion with sharp-looking reunion T-shirt, wait for his email asking for your size), Willi Manao (original N admin staff with Betty, Lito and Tonette, he was 16 ?, favorite of then NASSA girls ask Delle why, Mercedes (Ching) Verzosa-Gerlock (original LUSSA J and P, active with Edna at Optima, better half of Ed), Ed (Odot) Gerlock (former Maryknoll Missionary in Davao, former SAD of Tagum, expert in Bisaya, Tagalog, and Spanish? besides his English & Polish?, reputation cemented by deportation in 1976, prime advocate for senior rights and benefits through the Coalition of Services of the Elderly (COSE) which celebrated its 25th year on November 30 and finally, esteemed husband of Ching), Fred Manao, brother of Willi, worked with our dear, departed friend Ted Butalid at Share and Care Apostolate for Poor Settlers (SCAPS), currently taxi operator and relied on by the Paraiso Beach Resort team for safe passage to and from Malolos, Manny Lahoz (Episcopal Commission on Tribal Filipinos, better half of Angge, cousin of Ching, works on organic farming, Jan Brouwers (Dutch Phillips true and true and photographer- friend of Filipinos in past and succeeding years, husband of Delle, father to Kiko, Pachot and Bayani, and brewer of good Dutch coffee), Nenette Quilenderino (N-J&P, with  the Office of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, retiring early next year perhaps to pursue arts and crafts), Nena de la Cruz (N- RPD and one of the Malibay girls Sorry Nena, missed hearing your present work) and Nick Jones (long-time union organizer having first worked with Cesar Chavez among farmworkers in the California Central Valley, also the better half of Tonette Garcia.

On September 23, 2018, the NASSA group had another reunion, also at Delle Tiongson's place in Malolos. It has not had a reunion ever since.

June 14, 1979 Arrest and Torture Under Philippine Martial Law Part III Life in a Bicutan "Bartolina"

Bicutan at Last: Bartolina

Upon arriving in Bicutan Rehabilitation Center (BRC), we were given a cursory medical checkup. After that, all the males in our group were crammed into what the guards called a “bartolina." For six average size Filipino male adults, it was a minuscule cell. It was about 10 feet long, 8 feet wide, and 9 feet high. The cell was part of a whole cell block which, I believe, was at the 2nd  floor of a building. The 4 women from our group were also detained in a same sized "bartolina," but only for a day.   

Our guards told us that it was an unwritten rule in BRC for “Public Order Violators,” (POVs) as the political detainees were officially called, to spend some time in the “bartolina” before they were transferred to the more “humane” POV buildings. It was kind of an initiation thing. We were not told how long we would stay in the “bartolina.”

There was an area in the cell about 2 feet wide and as long as the cell, which had a concrete toilet bowl at one end and a faucet at the other. It was the toilet and bath area. Keeping the water from the rest of the floor was a concrete barrier about 2 inches high and 3 inches wide. 

The toilet and bath area made the sleeping area really small. And to think, we still had our bags to occupy precious space in that already stuffy cell. Given this situation, one of the first things I did was to overcome my claustrophobia. My big social bubble also had to go. 

Fr. James B. Reuter SJ Visits Us

The cell was not tiled, just gray and smooth concrete all around. There were 2 bare walls end to end. At one side, facing the corridor outside, there were floor to ceiling steel bars around an inch in diameter, and about 6 inches apart. Hanging from the ceiling was a lone 50 watt light-bulb. 

At the other side which had the toilet and bath area, was another concrete wall which had a long rectangular window, running almost the length of the cell, about 2 feet high, 8 inches thick, and about 3 inches from the ceiling. The window had steel bars the same diameter as those at the cell entrance. 

We had to stand on the toilet bowl so we could look out of the window. The window, which was our only source of sunshine, gave us a commanding view of the whole BRC. I remember the facility being divided into 5 or 6 buildings, with 3 at one side and 3 or 2 at the other.

It was from this window that we took turns in watching, one bright morning, Geoffrey Fabic being visited by Fr. James Reuter SJ. At that time, Fr. Reuter was Director of the National Office of Mass Media of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and editor of the anti-martial law magazine The Communicator.

The two sat about a meter apart, facing us, on a concrete bench at the sidelines of a basketball court just outside our building. Fr. Reuter, to the right, sat with legs crossed and wore an immaculate white cassock that seemed brighter than the sun. A white priestly sash was wrapped around his waist, which made him look all the holier. Jutting out from underneath his cassock were the bottoms of his dark pants and his drab, black leather shoes.

Fr. Reuter's  face was gentle and pinkish white. His bald top shone, while his paltry white hair gave his face a saintly countenance.   He gestured calmly with his hands every time he spoke. Geoffrey wore a t-shirt, tight shorts, and slippers. He fidgeted in excitement as he talked, but was otherwise a picture of relief and happiness.  Fr. Reuter was all ears to him.

To us watching from the prison windows, Fr. Reuter was certainly a very welcome sight. We were very excited by the prospect of him arranging our early release. However, after a week without results, that hope waned.

One of the detention buildings in Bicutan Rehabilitation Center (BRC), now called Camp Bagong Diwa.
Photo by the Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI)

MNLF Cellmates, Open Bathroom

Looking outside the corridor, I saw that there were 4 or 5 same-sized “bartolinas” on the other side, and that many on our side. Like our cell, they were all heartlessly crowded, even more so. The cell in front of us, for example, housed 12 to 14 Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) fighters! There were also that same number OXO or Sigue-Sigue gang members in each of the other cells. I noticed that many of these inmates had tattoos all over their bodies.

Because of the congestion, and the poor ventilation in the place, I was overwhelmed by the collective odor of unwashed and perspiring male bodies, and that of human feces and urine. On the 3rd day, however, I had adjusted to the smell, as had the rest of the group. I realized the human brain would adjust to anything, just give it time.

Amazingly, the 100 or so inmates that were detained in these "bartolinas" were well behaved. During our stay, there was no commotion nor altercation. And to think, most of these detainees represented the dregs of society. What I sensed, instead, was universal resignation. 

At night, because our cell was so short, and to keep feet hitting or touching heads, the 6 of us agreed to sleep lower limbs to lower limbs. At bedtime therefore, 3 pairs of legs tangled with 3 pairs of legs. It was not uncommon for an irritated kick to hit a leg now and then.  Needless to say, the jokes and snide, but comradely, remarks abounded.

By the way, what served as our sleeping mats were big and flattened cigarette boxes. We were used to these though: they were standard issue in the activist underground houses. I remember my bed was stamped, in large green letters, “Hope Cigarettes.” There were no pillows and blankets. There were no electric fans.

In that small cell, we also learned to bathe and settle our toilet business publicly, with not even a flimsy plastic curtain giving us privacy. At the beginning, we tried to hide behind the sleeping cartons, but got used to the exposure as the days wore on. For me, I surrendered my most private and treasured undertaking. The things I would do for the movement, was my recurring funny line.

Fried Galunggong, Muslim Names, Chess, and "Cruel War"

For breakfast, we had several pieces of pandesal, a hard boiled egg, and black instant coffee. Lunch consisted of the fabled fried “galunggong,” with rice, and dinner was the indefatigable sautéed vegetables and rice. The daily fare drew no complaints from the group, because we were only glad to have gone through the AFP’s harrowing torture chambers and survived.

We made friends with the MNLF group. They were a nice lot. They told us their story and we told them ours. Soon, they were giving each of us a Muslim name. I have forgotten the one they gave me.

We even played chess with the Muslims by attaching a thin nylon line to both ends of a chessboard, with the one making a move tugging the board first. The white and green board traveled back and forth the 6 foot floor distance between their cell and ours. Sometimes we played against the guys on our cell row, both to our left and right, in which case the chess board moved sideways. The guards did not mind.

We also tried to hold meetings in the formal, "grim and determined" style activists were known for. Geoffrey Fabic tried to initiate and preside, in the spirit of making up for what we failed to cover in Las Piñas. But somehow, our minds were not into discussing business, and the meetings just went in circles. We ended up just singing, when we weren't sleeping or reading. I remember the Peter, Paul, and Mary song "Cruel War" often came up, and also the Tagalog revolutionary song "Pagbabalikwas."

Time and Newsweek, A Bottle of Peanut Butter-Guava Jelly, and a Radio

On another occasion, I received a bagful of groceries from my parents. I remember giving away to an MNLF member, and I believe he was their commander, a nice, large bottle of Lady’s Choice peanut butter and guava jelly.

We were to spend 2 weeks in the “bartolina.” Most of this time I had spent reading the Time and Newsweek issues my parents had brought me. We were then transferred to the POV buildings. These, with their compassionate though still austere amenities, were the Marcos dictatorship’s “showcase” to the world on how political detainees were being treated in the Philippines.

Before we left the “bartolina” I gave the MNLF group one final gift: an apple green transistor radio about the size of a shoebox, batteries included. It was a present from my parents delivered some 2 days after we arrived at BRC. The MNLF commander, however, begged for it as we packed our bags. 

He was too much of a friend to refuse.

     

   

June 14, 1979 Arrest and Torture Under Philippine Martial Law Part II

The Car Leaves Las Piñas: Off to Camp Crame!

As the car moved, our captors told us to crouch low, obviously to keep us from knowing where we were going. They were probably not sure if the blindfolds were totally covering our vision.

At this point, I had not discounted the possibility that the agents would summarily execute or “salvage” us. Another prospect was being brought to a safe house where we would be interrogated and tortured indefinitely. I also wondered if we were going to be held in single place or in multiple places.

Some ten minutes into this early morning ride , the Ford Escort stopped, after which I felt it going down a steep grade. I surmised that the stop was the tollgate of the South Expressway, and that the incline was the short spur road that led to the expressway. 

As the car regained speed, I imagined that we were already cruising on the said road. The two agents at the front were calm and did not talk to each other. There was no radio chatter in the car either. I did not sense any traffic stops. After about 30 minutes or so into the ride, I sensed that daylight was breaking.

A Large Parking Lot, and an Ironing Board

About 45 minutes after we left Las Piñas, I felt the car stop. I instinctively raised my head, and from the teensy peephole of my blindfold, I saw that we had pulled into a large parking lot.

I was hugely relieved at this sight, because it told me we were in some kind of urban facility, certainly not the kind of remote place where people were finished-off. My projections of our group not being “salvaged” were further buoyed when we were led out of the car and ushered into what I sensed was a good-sized building.

Inside the building, they made me sit behind something I could lay my head and my weary, cuffed arms on. I then realized that the platform was nothing else but an ironing board! Horror of horrors, I thought they were going to torture me with an electric iron, like what I had read in a Task Force Detainees (TFD) publication.

Dreadful visions of other detainees being ironed at the soles of their feet came to my mind. I quickly grit my teeth and prepared for that eventuality. Perhaps it added to my fears that I was barefoot, having left my just-bought Otto shoes in Las Piñas.  While pretending to sleep, I nudged my blindfold upwards a bit, so I could survey the surroundings.

It helped that my blindfold was very loose now. In fact, I had practically achieved unobstructed vision in my left eye. I just had to hide it from the agents.

Our Detention Room: Handcuffed to Iron Beds at Night

From my “sleeping” position, I saw the room. It was about 15 meters long and 10 meters wide. There was a single door, to my left, and in front of me were about 3 large windows with steel bars placed vertically.

It did not look like a prison cell at all, more like a dormitory. There were 2 to 3 kapok cushioned beds, an upholstered couch, and some chairs. It was well lit, both by fluorescent lights, and sunshine, which the windows allowed generously.  

My companions were already there, seated, blindfolded and handcuffed. We were placed randomly and evenly across the room. I distinctly remember seeing Judith Reyes Fabic in one corner. In that instant, I thought of Judith’s 2-year old daughter Tala, who was not with us in Las Piñas.

Save for several escorted trips to the bathroom, I was to remain in this position until noontime, when someone woke me up and placed food on the ironing board.  Lunch consisted of rice and sautéed sayote or upo. They were placed separately in two plastic bags.

Lunch was an opportunity to completely uncover my eyes and survey our detention place. I do not remember now if my companions did the same. I remember finishing my lunch in no time, which I ate by hand straight from the plastic bags. After this, an agent blindfolded me again.

Most of the time detainees while away their time gazing into emptiness and avoiding depression.Photo from Raissa Robles, Tortured Art: Martial Law Detainees Sketch Out Their Pain and Defiance, https://
www.raissarobles.com/2011/09/23/tortured-art-martial-law-detainees-sketch-out-their-pain/

Mug Shot, Ome Candazo

Shortly after lunchtime, it was mug shot taking time. Someone took me to a small room. I read the chalk writing on the small, rectangular blackboard they made me hold. It said: “REYES, R E 14 JUNE ’79 RSU-4.

At about mid-afternoon, someone led me to another place in the room and made me sit on a chair. I then sensed that people other than from our group were in the room. Without warning, someone sat next to me.

That person whispered: “Brod, huli nanaman tayo,” (Brother, we have been arrested again).  Immediately I recognized the voice as that of Romeo “Ome” Candazo, a fraternity brother from the UP Alpha Sigma Fraternity.

Ome Candazo said that jestingly, as was his wont. We had been arrested together 4 years earlier, in the summer of 1975. We were detained with 6 others at Recad 6, Camp Crame. The charge was something like “Public Alarm and Scandal,” stemming from our alleged participation in a fraternity rumble inside UP campus.  

I acknowledged Ome’s greeting, and from behind our blindfolds, we jokingly chatted, albeit in whispers. The light tone helped ease our worries a lot.  

Mar Galang

The next person who approached me I did not recognize by voice, but he introduced himself as Mar Galang. I would later learn from Ome Candazo that Mar Galang was another Alpha Sigma brother. Mar Galang asked me where I was arrested, and I quickly told him: “Princess Plume, Talon Village.” He was surprised to learn that we had been arrested in the same neighborhood.

Up to this time, I had not been able to talk to any person belonging to our group. After my chat with Mar Galang, I remained seated on the chair. It was here that I had dinner, at about 7:30 pm.  It consisted, again, of rice and vegetables.

When bedtime came at about 10 pm, someone led me to lie on a familiar steel-frame bed with a kapok mattress. Someone then uncuffed my left hand, and fastened the freed handcuff to the steel bed. I was now effectively fastened to the green bed.

There was not a pillow, nor a blanket. I assumed a fetal position, not minding that I had not brushed my teeth, nor washed my face. It was in this basic position that I slept all night, because the handcuffed right hand kept me from turning. I assumed my companions were also handcuffed to their beds.

In the morning of our 2^nd day, with the blindfolds gone, we were allowed to move freely in the detention room, though still handcuffed. We were so glad and excited to be able to talk to each other at last.

Two Groups Meet

All of us were there: Geoffrey “Jun” Fabic, Judith Fabic, Elorde “Eloy” Calimoso, Augusto “Augut” Añonuevo, Jeremias “Jerem” Celestino, Sylvia “Ibyang” Flores, Avelina “Ave” Enrile, Ruth Santos, Rolando Marañon, and myself.

The other group of detainees was also allowed to loosen up in the room. After initially meeting Ome Candazo and Mar Galang, I finally met the rest of them. I had suspected all along that the June 14, 1979 arrest bagged not just 1, but 2 groups of activists.

One by one, I saw them, as they entered the room.  Some of them washed up at the single sink and faucet in the room. They were: Edgar “Edjop” Jopson, Winifred “Wingie” Villamin, Josefina “Jocabs” Cabuniag, Oscar “Oca” Armea, and Caridad “Caring” Magpantay.

Edgar Jopson

Edgar Jopson greeted me by my nickname. He then told our group to tell as many relatives and friends who would visit that he had been arrested. He even pronounced, with his slightly baritone voice, his first name, middle name, and surname as he sought our help.

This was a huge change for me because, the past 3 years since I first met him in 1976, he had always prudently assumed various aliases, like “Archie” and “Lem.” However, these aliases were futile, because almost everybody in the underground knew his real name, he being a famous student leader in the golden years of the Philippine student movement.

The latter codename, to me, was the most memorable. “Lem” was short for “Golem” which, in turn, was a name given to giants in Philippine lore. Edgar Jopson was a diminutive man even by Philippine standards, and “Lem,” of course, was used humorously.

We always assumed that the military also knew him, and tried our best to avoid being with him in public places. And here he was, almost shouting, virtually announcing to the world, that Edgar Gil Jopson had been captured!

Even My Mother Recognized Edgar Jopson

Edgar Jopson was so well known that even my mother recognized him when he knocked at the side door of our house in Maysantol, Bulacan, Bulacan, sometime in 1977. He was then asking for instructions regarding a meeting venue, which happened to be my grandfather’s 19th century house. My mother noted that he was very polite. My brother Luis Reyes, who went to Ateneo, also recognized him when he returned to our house a few months after.

That same house, by the way, was the site of many Katipunan meetings during the Philippine Revolution.     

Edgar Jopson was 30 years old when we were arrested. He had large bags under his round eyes, a greatly receded hairline, a bald pate more than 2 inches across, and a bushy moustache. He was wearing a “sando” undershirt.

The 1970 Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardee was wiping his face and underarms with a wet face-towel or “bimpo” as he spoke to us. His persona radiated calmness and self-confidence, which blended well with his exclusive boys’ school demeanor.

Edgar Jopson’s group stayed in the room for almost an hour. The males and females from the two groups huddled separately. I chatted lengthily with Winifred Villamin, Oscar Armea, Ome Candazo, and Mar Galang. I asked them such things as if they were tortured, have they been visited by relatives, and how they were coping with the situation.

Regional Security Unit-4

From them I learned such details as our detention place, which was Camp Came, and the intelligence unit that apprehended us. Our arresting unit was “Regional Security Unit-4” or RSU-4. Its head was Col. Ishmael Rodrigo, while the one who commanded the operation was Capt. Robert Delfin.

Another person who they thought mattered was bald and bespectacled Atty. Virgilio Saldajeno, who, we later learned, was attached to the Judge Advocate General’s Office (JAGO), but who, for some reason, participated in intelligence work.

I further learned from Ome Candazo that RSU-4 was the new name of the infamous Constabulary Security Unit (CSU), that dreaded unit prominent for its extra-judicial killings of political captives.   

Edgar Jopson’s group then returned to their separate detention place, which I did not get to see during our entire stay in Camp Crame. They would, however, be allowed to stay in our room every day, starting in the morning, but for only a few hours. This would be the basic pattern in our more than 2-week stay at Camp Crame.

Oscar Armea is Tortured in the Genitals with Electric Current

One morning, at about 7 am, a shaken Oscar Armea had a terrifying story to tell. He only shared it with us male detainees. It must have been our 6^th day in Camp Crame.  He had been woken at about 2 am and interrogated by 4 or 5 agents in a small room. During the questioning, which lasted more than hour, Oscar told us the agents had repeatedly applied an electric current on his genitals.

Oscar Armea showed us his penis and it was bleeding. Displaying his working class grit, and his story over, Oscar Armea nonchalantly covered his genitals and started eating breakfast. But the scary message had been communicated: starting that day, anybody among us could be roused from sleep at the most unholy hour and be interrogated and tortured. The terror was palpable, although we only spoke about it in whispers.

This is how Oscar Armea looked when he came out of the interrogation room. For two weeks, we were handcuffed day and night. At night, the handcuffs were fastened to the steel beds, called "tarima." Photo from Raissa Robles, Tortured Art: Martial Law Detainees Sketch Out Their Pain and Defiance, https://www.raissarobles.com/2011/09/23/tortured-art-martial-law-detainees-sketch-out-their-pain/

 

The next morning, it was Mar Galang’s turn to tell a story. He too, had been interrogated early at dawn and for more than hour. But this time, he told us, the goons had made him lean, shirtless, against a functioning window air conditioner. I do not remember now if Mar got pneumonia or influenza, or a cold, or if he passed out because of this horrific cruelty. But I do remember it terrified us even more.

On another morning, Geoffrey Fabic returned from a 3 am to 7 am interrogation with a terrifying story to tell. He related to us that during the interrogation, agents forced him to play "Russian Roulette." He told us that when the agents had run out of questions, or just to scare the wits out of him, they loaded just one round into a revolver, spun it, handed it to him, and compelled him, under pain of physical torture, to squeeze the trigger.  

We Lock Arms: Itigil ang Torture!

But these captive activists would not simply grin and bear it. That morning, we dared lock arms inside the room, all 17 of us, and shouted repeatedly something like “Itigil ang torture!” After 5 to 7 tense minutes, some unidentified agents about our age entered the room and told us to stop. One slightly older agent who displayed authority yelled at us for 2 times:  “We can salvage you anytime we want!”  

We decided not to push our luck. We stopped the brief protest and settled down to our seats. We assessed the situation and concluded that it was better that we conducted the protest than we did nothing at all. It was a preemptive move, although a calculated one, we told ourselves. After a few minutes, I was summoned by Captain Robert Delfin, and we talked at the building's front entrance, which I was seeing for the first time.

I did not know why I was singled out among the detainees. I surmised they must have thought I was the leader of the protest, because before we locked arms, I had angrily confronted an agent who had come into the room to give us a look. Captain Delfin was firm but conciliatory, and tried to explain the military’s side. I told him we will continue the protest if they keep up the torture.

Events would prove us right: from then on, the interrogations continued, with each of us being grilled separately. The difference was that they merely threatened to torture us (which was nerve-wracking as it was) but did not actually do so. 

Edgar Jopson Escapes

On an unforgettable night, we were awakened by shouting, lights being turned on, cars and motorcycles starting, and frenzied activity by many people just outside our room. We even heard a child crying. We did not mind the ruckus because it abated after about 30 minutes. When morning broke, we were surprised that Edgar Jopson’s group was not allowed to enter our room and mingle with us.

We learned, that same morning, from guards that we had befriended, that the unthinkable had happened: Edgar Jopson had escaped. The commotion that ensued was nothing but startled RSU-4 operatives rushing off their posts to pursue Edgar Jopson.

This was Edgar Jopson during his student days at Ateneo. He headed the moderate National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP). During martial law, he was radicalized by his trade union activities and decided eventually to join the Leftist underground. His group occupied the other house, apart from that where we were captured, which the military raided in the dawn hours of June 14, 1979.  Their house was just 10-15 meters away from us.  

The crying child, it turned out, was Jopson’s son, Noy, who was left in Crame with his nanny. Apparently, and unbeknownst to us, Edgar Jopson had arranged with our captors to have his boy sleep in the stockade. I surmised the child was in the underground house when they were captured. We never knew what happened to the child after this incident.

This was Edgar Jopson as the military took a mugshot of him at the Regional Security
Unit (RSU) headquarters at Camp Crame after the June 14, 1979 arrests at Las Piñas.

Although we were apprehensive about this event because of the possible repercussions, we silently rejoiced at Edgar Jopson’s getaway. He had intimated to us his intentions to escape the first day that we saw him in Camp Crame, but we never made much of it. We did not know how serious he was.

More Activists Are Arrested and Tortured at the Las Piñas House

From one of the visitors, we learned what had happened at the Las Piñas house after our arrest. Another activist who was to attend our conference, whose name I cannot reveal at this writing, arrived at the house at about 10 am.

When he knocked at the front door, it opened, and he was met, to his face, by the muzzle of an M16. He thought it was a prank. He jokingly told the wielder: “Kasama, masamang biro yata yan.” (Comrade, I think that’s a cruel joke)

Instantly after he said that, the door swung open.  He was accosted by more armed agents, who had been waiting. It was standard procedure. He was then interrogated and tortured for quite a long time in the living room, reportedly until late afternoon.

During one pause, he was brought to an upstairs room. What he saw would have buckled weaker hearts.

Our Courier is Captured and Sexually Abused

Another activist, a courier named Doris, was also being interrogated and tortured. She had arrived much earlier, at about 7 am, or 3 hours after we had been hauled off.

In her early 20s, Doris was seated on a chair completely naked, with 5 or 6 agents questioning, slapping, and touching her. Incredibly, Doris was keeping her composure, answering the questions evasively, and outwitting the agents. Several times she was on the verge of breaking down, but held on valiantly.

She told the agents to take it easy with her, as she was having her monthly period. Instead of heeding her plea, the agents took a bottle of ketchup from the kitchen, inserted the bottle into her vagina, and let the red liquid flow, enough to cover her delicate area. She took the mockery all in stride, with nary a trace of emotion.

After seeing this, the other activist was taken back to the living room and the interrogation and torture continued. He was reportedly released the next day and not detained ---- he struck a deal with the military to be an asset within the underground movement: a deal he did not keep.

As for the unflinching Doris, she was detained for some time, and released. She went back to the movement. I don't know what has happened to her ever since.      

Sixto Carlos Sr.

On another day, while we were having lunch, our attention was called by a male person, just outside our door, shouting: “Where is my son?” quite repetitively. We were already free from our handcuffs, and allowed to roam freely in the room. Even the escorts to the bathroom were now gone. In other words, I was free to open the lone door by myself, which was unlocked.

When I looked outside our room, I saw a man, of average built and height, in his early sixties, and dressed in light pants and polo-barong. With his gray hair, he looked very distinguished. He was walking hurriedly up and down the corridor, looking into every cell. While I watched, he must have twice shouted “Where is my son?”

The man was Sixto Carlos Sr., the father of long missing activist Sixto Carlos Jr. At that time, Sixto Carlos Jr. had been missing for almost two months, and his family was afraid he might have been “salvaged.” It turned out that he was arrested in Mandaluyong with no witnesses, and kept in solitary confinement in a safehouse, and heavily tortured. It took his family 4 months to find him. The fact that his father was a former military man helped a lot.

We Meet Commander Dante

Yet another notable experience we had during our Camp Crame detention was when we were allowed to have 30 minutes of outside exposure or “sunning” as the agents would call it, in a secured and sunlit courtyard in the building. It was our third time to do so, with the first 2 outings being uneventful.

Suddenly, two hands began reaching out behind a concrete wall, as if someone was jumping so we would see his/her hands. Before we knew it, that someone had held on to the wall to support himself, showed us half his body, and talked to us just long enough before his arms grew weary, and he fell back again.

The man was the legendary Commander Dante, aka Bernabe Buscayno, founder of the New People’s Army. His arms and upper torso were thin and lithe, and his face was very ordinary looking. He was captured in 1977, and had been detained in that building ever since. In the 3 times that he popped up from his wall, he introduced himself, commended us for what we were doing, and  advised us to escape.

My Parents Visit Me

The most touching part of my detention at Camp Crame was when my parents, Domingo Coronel Reyes, and Eneida Enriquez Reyes, visited me. At the time of my arrest, I had not been on speaking terms with my father, over a very petty thing, like he did not intervene when my younger brother got into a fight with a town toughie in Bulacan. The spat had been going on for nearly two years, and it had gone into a stalemate because two proud egos would not give in.

My eyes welled with tears as I saw my parents sitting side-by-side in Atty. Virgilio Saldajeno’s office. I had realized then how much my father and mother loved me. I had expected my mother to visit me the first time she could. She tearfully told me that she had burned all my “subversive” materials in my cabinet, and that she, at 56, wasn’t getting any younger.

But with my father, who had Kapampangan pride so tough, he would not sacrifice it for all the money or power in the world, it was different. Here he was, humbling himself before me by being the one to break the ice in our silly standoff. He spoke to me as if nothing had happened between us. They even brought me two bags of groceries!   

What is more, he whispered to me that he and my mother were proud to have a son who was an activist! That day, I was sure, I was a winner. Not only did I have parents who loved me, I had parents who believed in me and supported my cause. Back in my bed, I cried like a child.  

Atty. Virgilio Saldajeno and Col. Ishmael Rodrigo

Atty. Saldajeno informed my parents that we would soon be moved to Bicutan Rehabilitation Center (BRC), somewhere in Taguig, Metro-Manila. As he spoke, I looked at Atty. Saldajeno with disguised but seething anger, because Oscar Armea had mentioned his name as one of those who tortured him with electric current. Oscar even said that Atty. Saldajeno even instructed his interrogators to increase the voltage when it appeared he was withstanding it.

Two days before we were transferred to BRC, both groups had a meeting with the head of RSU-4, Col. Ishmael Rodrigo. He was a man in his mid-fifties, graying, but looked fit, as I expected military people would look.  He was mild mannered, Chinese-looking, and spoke to us with respect. It was a great departure, I thought, from the unnerving treatment we had been getting from his subalterns.

I was to learn later that Col. Ishmael Rodrigo was a WWII and Korean War veteran, and had been active in the anti-Huk campaign during the Magsaysay administration.  

It was mostly pleasantries that we exchanged. Things like family and educational background, and what caused us to join the movement. We were very kind and open to Col. Rodrigo, reciprocating his civil treatment of us.

Someone from the group even jokingly asked him about his anti-communism. We were, however, very careful, lest we reveal delicate or operational information. He did not, to be fair, appear to be fishing for information.

Rogue’s Gallery

That night, at about 10 pm, we encountered a final bout with psychological torture. We were all blindfolded, and handcuffed, and led single file to someplace outside the room. Finally, were made to sit at one end of a dimly lighted and long corridor. I assumed Edgar Jopson’s group was with us, because of the familiar voices I heard.

They let us sit there for 5 to 10 minutes. They then removed our blindfolds. Suddenly, what seemed like a hundred klieg lights opened up, from the other end of the corridor, blinding our eyes. At the same time, we heard persons filing in, seemingly occupying both sides of the hall, with the middle part left empty.  All of us thought this was some kind of macabre form of torture, or RSU-4’s version of a collective “third-degree” interrogation.

At any rate, I told myself, if I would hear rifles being cocked as in a firing squad, I would not be surprised. I could have sworn I heard sobs and nervous shaking in our group. However, everything remained eerily silent, and the people before us just stood there. It was as if they were just observing us. But we were prepared for the worst.

Agents Descend on RSU-4

After about 20 minutes, they turned off the lights, led us out of that dark place, and back to our room. Over breakfast the following morning, we talked about the experience and how frightening it was. We were, however, totally clueless on what it was all about. 

Later, when we were already in BRC, the other detainees explained it to us.

It was the military’s way of letting other intelligence units identify us, or memorize our faces, and they did it routinely. It was RSU-4 which arrested us, but other intelligence units, like Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP), National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), and Military Intelligence Service Group (MISG) were also interested in us, to add to their data base.

That encounter was some kind of identification session, a rogue’s gallery if you will.  The people whom we felt entered the room were sundry agents representing these other intelligence units including their regional units. In all probability, they said, these observers included intelligence bigwigs like Col. Rodolfo Aguinaldo (RSU-4) and Col. Rolando Abadilla (MISG). It was an inter-agency coordination thing. The lights were, of course, so we could not see their faces.

Off to Bicutan

We were detained at RSU-4 Camp Crame for slightly more than 2 weeks. I would estimate it was around July 2 or 3 1979 when, handcuffed, we were loaded on an open military truck and transported, with armed escorts, to BRC. I remember passing through what is now Bonifacio Global City on the way to Taguig. Fort Bonifacio had many acacia trees. It was a sunny day.