MAKATI CITY (MindaNews / 18 March) While I was barely a few minutes into my 30-minute presentation on the Sulu Exclusion at a recent philosophy conference, I could already sense that something was coming from a young professor—one from a city that was among the Tres Maríasduring the SPCPD days.
Seated in the middle of the hall, his eyes were locked in, his attention razor-sharp. It was as if he was dissecting every word I uttered, measuring each phrase against his own convictions.
I was not mistaken.
During the open forum, his hand shot up. The first to ask. He questioned my use of “Jabidah Massacre”to refer to the March 18, 1968 incident on Corregidor Island. His objections?
- Some, including former Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, dismissed it as merely a mutiny.
- The event, he argued, was politicized by those opposing President Marcos Sr. at the time.
- The word “massacre” only reopens wounds, stirring old grievances instead of fostering healing.
I listened. Then, I responded.
First, I acknowledged the contested nature of historical narratives. An event that took place behind closed doors will always have conflicting accounts. Some may call it a massacre, others a mutiny, and still others—a complete fabrication. But history is not about silencing perspectives; it is about allowing every narrative to be heard and letting the public discern which is credible, or at least more believable.
In fact, one is free to believe in the version of the likes of Enrile—an architect of the 1972 Martial Law—who, at one time, revealed that the ambush against him (which was used as one of the justifications for the declaration of Martial Law) was merely a drama, while at another time, claimed it was a true ambush. If one can accept such shifting narratives, then one should have no problem allowing competing versions of Jabidah to be examined openly.
Second, I reminded him that politicization does not negate existence. Just because an event is used for political ends does not mean it never happened. Didn’t we learn in Political Science 101 that nearly everything is ‘political’? And if we were to dismiss every historical event that has been politicized, we might as well erase half of our recorded past.
Third, I pointed to the lessons of Transitional Justice. Recounting history—no matter how tragic—is part of the healing process. Forgiving is one thing; forgetting is another. (In paraphrase, Nelson Mandela himself said, “We forgive but not forget.”) And beyond remembrance, there is the stage of memorialization—the act of preserving memory so that future generations will neither ignore nor repeat the mistakes of the past.
Today, March 18, as we commemorate Yawm al-Shuhada’ (Martyrs’ Day), I cannot help but ask: How far have we really gone in conducting in-depth research on the Jabidah Massacre?
Remembrance alone is not enough. We owe the martyrs not just commemoration—but truth.
[MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. Mansoor L. Limba, PhD in International Relations and Shari‘ah Counselor-at-Law (SCL), is a writer, university professor, blogger, chess trainer, and translator (from Persian into English and Filipino) with tens of written and translation works to his credit on such subjects as international politics, history, political philosophy, intra-faith and interfaith relations, cultural heritage, Islamic finance, jurisprudence (fiqh), theology (‘ilm al-kalam), Qur’anic sciences and exegesis (tafsir), hadith, ethics, and mysticism. He can be reached at mlimba@diplomats.com and his books can be purchased at www.elzistyle.com and www.amazon.com/author/mansoorlimba.]
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