José Rizal - Tokoh Pahlawan Bangsa Filipina

Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (lahir di Calamba, Provinsi Laguna, Filipina, 19 Juni 1861 – meninggal di Rizal Park, Manila, Filipina, 30 Desember 1896 pada umur 35 tahun) adalah tokoh bangsa Filipina. Ia diberikan bermacam-macam gelar: "Kebanggaan Ras Melayu," "Tokoh Besar Malaya," "Tokoh Utama Filipino," "Mesias Revolusi," "Pahlawan Universal," "Mesias Penebusan." Hari peringatan kematian José Rizal adalah 30 Desember dan merupakan hari libur di Filipina. Ia adalah seorang yang berbakat. Selain dari menjadi seorang dokter, ia juga seorang arsitek, seniman, pendidik, ekonom, etnolog, ahli pertanian, sejarahwan, jurnalis, pemusik, mitologiwan, internasionalis, naturalis, dokter mata, sosiolog, pematung, penyair, penulis drama dan novelis. Ia menguasai 22 bahasa, di antaranya: Tagalog, Cebuano, Melayu, Tionghoa, Arab, Ibrani, Inggris, Jepang, Spanyol, Catalan, Italia, Portugis, Latin, Perancis, Jerman, Yunani, Rusia, Sanskerta dan dialek-dialek Filipina yang lain. Sebagai seorang patriot tertinggi bagi bangsa Filipina, hari kematiannya pada 30 Desember kini diperingati sebagai hari libur di Filipina, yang disebut hari Rizal.

Sebagai seorang pembaru politik, ia setara dengan Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, dan Sun Yat Sen sebagai perintis yang mengubah cara berpikir di benua Asia, namun sebagai seorang modernis yang mendapatkan yang terbaik dari apa yang dapat diberikan oleh peradaban Eropa, ia melampaui negara maupun benua, seorang visioner yang berpandangan jauh ke depan, dengan pesan yang relevan untuk masa kini. Begitu pula dikarenakan jiwa sosialnya yang tinggi tanpa memandang ras dan bangsa, maka pemerintahan Kota Medan, Indonesia, mengabadikan nama Jose Rizal menjadi salah satu nama jalan di Kota Medan. Dalam suratnya yang terakhir, dari rangkaian surat-menyurat yang sangat tebal dan tidak ada tandingannya dalam tradisi Asia, kepada Profesor Fernando Blumentritt dari Sudeten, Jerman - Saudaraku tercinta, saat engkau menerima surat ini, aku sudah tiada. Esok pada pk. 7, aku akan ditembak; namun aku tidak bersalah atas tuduhan melakukan pemberontakan... Ia harus meyakinkan sahabatnya bahwa ia tidak pernah berubah menjadi seorang revolusioner, seperti yang pernah dipertimbangkannya, bahwa cita-cita yang diperjuangkan oleh keduanya tetap dipegangnya hingga akhir. Ia pun menyerahkan sebuah buku yang secara pribadi dijilidnya di Dapitan untuk 'sahabat terbaik dan tercintanya'. Ketika orang Austria itu menerimanya, ia menangis dan meratap.

Setelah Rizal dijatuhi hukuman mati, muncul banyak keraguan mengenai kejadian-kejadian di sekitar kematiannya. Banyak orang yang tetap percaya bahwa Rizal tidak menikahi kekasihnya tercinta Josephine Bracken sesuai tradisi Katolik Roma beberapa jam sebelum hukuman matinya, ataupun mencabut bagian-bagian tulisannya yang bernada anti Katolik, sebuah pertikaian yang tidak kunjung berkurang. Firasat Rizal sendiri adalah pembelaannya setelah kematiannya. Tersisip dalam 'Mi Ultimo Adios' sebuah kunci yang mungkin menyingkapkan isi hatinya, "Aku pergi ke tempat di mana tidak ada budak, tidak ada algojo atau penindas, di mana iman tidak membunuh..." Ini adalah komentarnya yang terakhir tentang Gereja Katolik pada masanya. Karena kecerdasannya yang luar biasa, teladannya terhadap para sahabat dan musuhnya, perjuangannya yang baik dan tidakannya yang berani atas nama perdamaian, ia menjulang melampaui semua pahlawan Filipina. Di tempat ia gugur kini berdiri sebuah patung, yang dirancang oleh pematung Swiss, Richard Kissling yang terkenal karena patungnya, "William Tell". Patung itu memuat tulisan: "Aku ingin memperlihatkan kepada orang-orang yang mencabut hak mereka untuk mencintai negaranya, bahwa ketika kita tahu bagaimana mengorbankan diri kita demi tugas dan keyakinan kita, maut tidaklah menjadi masalah bila seseorang mati untuk mereka yang dicintainya– untuk negaranya dan untuk mereka yang dicintainya".


José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Realonda (Spanish pronunciation: [xoˈse riˈsal]; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist and polymath during the tail end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. An ophthalmologist by profession, Rizal became a writer and a key member of the Filipino Propaganda Movement which advocated political reforms for the colony under Spain. He was executed by the Spanish colonial government for the crime of rebellion after the Philippine Revolution, inspired in part by his writings, broke out. Though he was not actively involved in its planning or conduct, he ultimately approved of its goals which eventually led to Philippine independence. He is widely considered one of the greatest heroes of the Philippines and has been recommended to be so honored by an officially empaneled National Heroes Committee. However, no law, executive order or proclamation has been enacted or issued officially proclaiming any Filipino historical figure as a national hero. He was the author of the novels Noli Me Tángere and El filibusterismo, and a number of poems and essays.

Moments before his execution on December 30, 1896, by a squad of Filipino soldiers of the Spanish Army, a backup force of regular Spanish Army troops stood ready to shoot the executioners should they fail to obey orders. The Spanish Army Surgeon General requested to take his pulse: it was normal. Aware of this the sergeant commanding the backup force hushed his men to silence when they began raising "vivas" with the highly partisan crowd of Peninsular and Mestizo Spaniards. His last words were those of Jesus Christ: "consummatum est", – it is finished. He was secretly buried in Pacò Cemetery in Manila with no identification on his grave. His sister Narcisa toured all possible gravesites and found freshly turned earth at the cemetery with guards posted at the gate. Assuming this could be the most likely spot, there never having been any ground burials, she made a gift to the caretaker to mark the site "RPJ", Rizal's initials in reverse.

His undated poem Mi último adiós, believed to have been written a few days before his execution, was hidden in an alcohol stove, which was later handed to his family with his few remaining possessions, including the final letters and his last bequests.[47]:91 During their visit, Rizal reminded his sisters in English, "There is something inside it", referring to the alcohol stove given by the Pardo de Taveras which was to be returned after his execution, thereby emphasizing the importance of the poem. This instruction was followed by another, "Look in my shoes", in which another item was secreted. Exhumation of his remains in August 1898, under American rule, revealed he had been uncoffined, his burial not on sanctified ground granted the 'confessed' faithful, and whatever was in his shoes had disintegrated. And now he is buried in Rizal Monument in Manila.

In his letter to his family he wrote: "Treat our aged parents as you would wish to be treated...Love them greatly in memory of me...December 30, 1896." He gave his family instructions for his burial: "Bury me in the ground. Place a stone and a cross over it. My name, the date of my birth and of my death. Nothing more. If later you wish to surround my grave with a fence, you can do it. No anniversaries." In his final letter, to Blumentritt – Tomorrow at 7, I shall be shot; but I am innocent of the crime of rebellion. I am going to die with a tranquil conscience. Rizal is believed to be the first Filipino revolutionary whose death is attributed entirely to his work as a writer; and through dissent and civil disobedience enabled him to successfully destroy Spain's moral primacy to rule. He also bequeathed a book personally bound by him in Dapitan to his 'best and dearest friend.' When Blumentritt received it in his hometown Litoměřice (Leitmeritz) he broke down and wept.

Read More

Rodrigo Roa Duterte Presiden Negara Filipina

Rodrigo "Rody" Roa Duterte (lahir di Maasin, Leyte, Persemakmuran Filipina, 28 Maret 1945; umur 74 tahun), yang berjuluk Digong, adalah seorang politikus dan pengacara Filipina keturunan Visayan. Duterte adalah salah satu wali kota yang paling lama menjabat di Filipina dan merupakan wali kota Kota Davao, sebuah kota yang sangat tinggi urbanisasinya di pulau Mindanao, selama 7 masa jabatan, dengan total lebih dari 22 tahun. Ia juga menjabat sebagai wakil wali kota dan anggota kongres di kota tersebut. Pada 21 November 2015, Duterte mendeklarasikan pengkandidatannya untuk Presiden Filipina dalam pemilihan 2016.

Duterte lahir pada 28 Maret 1945 di Maasin, Leyte, Persemakmuran Filipina[3] dari pengacara Cebuano Vicente G. Duterte, yang menjabat sebagai Gubernur (pada waktu itu belum dibagi) Davao dan Soledad Roa, yang berasal dari Cabadbaran, Agusan yang merupakan guru sekolah dan pemimpin civic. Ayah Duterte, Vicente, sebelumnya menjadi gubernur provinsi Davao, yang sesekali menjadi wali kota Danao di Cebu. Sepupu Rodrigo, Ronald, di sisi lain, menjabat sebagai wali kota Kota Cebu dari 1983 sampai 1986. Ayah Ronald, Ramon Duterte, juga memegang jabatan tersebut dari 1957 sampai 1959. Keluarga Duterte dianggap menjadi keluarga politik dari klan Durano dan Almendras sebagai kekerabatan.

Presiden Filipina Rodrigo Duterte menyatakan masih berhasrat untuk mengubah nama negara Filipina. Berbicara dalam pembangunan gymnasium di Isabela City, Minggu (3/3/2019), Duterte mengatakan, seharusnya nama Filipina harus diubah karena berasal dari kolonial Spanyol. Duterte mengatakan, dirinya tidak akan kembali mengusulkan perubahan menjadi Maharlika. Nama Filipina berasal dari Philip II, Raja Spanyol yang membiayai perjalanan penjelajah Portugis Ferdinand Magellan. Magellan melakukan ekspedisi untuk mencari jalur baru ke Pulau Rempah-rempah atau Maluku dan sampai di Filipina pada 1521. Pada 1978, mantan Senator Eddie Ilarde mengusulkan adanya undang-undang ganti nama Filipina menjadi Maharlika yang berarti Karya Agung.


Rodrigo Roa Duterte, KGCR (/duːˈtɜːrtə/; Tagalog: [roˈdɾigo ɾowa dʊˈtɛɾtɛ] (About this soundlisten); born March 28, 1945), also known as Digong and Rody, is a Filipino politician who is the 16th and current President of the Philippines, and the first from Mindanao to hold the office. He is the chair of the ruling PDP–Laban party. Taking office at 71 years old in June 2016, Duterte is the oldest person to assume the Philippine presidency; the record was previously held by Sergio Osmeña at the age of 65. Duterte studied political science at the Lyceum of the Philippines University, graduating in 1968, before obtaining a law degree from San Beda College of Law in 1972. He then worked as a lawyer and was a prosecutor for Davao City, before becoming vice mayor and, subsequently, mayor of the city in the wake of the Philippine Revolution of 1986. Duterte was among the longest-serving mayors in the Philippines, serving seven terms and totaling more than 22 years in office.

Frequently described as a populist and a nationalist, Duterte's political success has been aided by his vocal support for the extrajudicial killing of drug users and other criminals. Human rights groups have documented over 1,400 killings allegedly by death squads operating in Davao between 1998 and May 2016; the victims were mainly drug users, petty criminals and street children. A 2009 report by the Philippine Commission on Human Rights confirmed the "systematic practice of extrajudicial killings" by the Davao Death Squad. Duterte has alternately confirmed and denied his involvement. The Office of the Ombudsman closed an investigation in January 2016 stating that they found no evidence that the Davao Death Squad exists, and no evidence to connect the police or Duterte with the killings. The case has since been reopened. Duterte has repeatedly confirmed that he personally killed criminal suspects as mayor of Davao.

On May 9, 2016, Duterte won the Philippine presidential election with 39.01% of the votes, defeating four other candidates, namely Mar Roxas of the Liberal Party (23.4%), Senator Grace Poe (21.6%), former vice president Jejomar Binay of the United Nationalist Alliance (12.9%), and the late Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago of the People's Reform Party (3%). During his campaign, he promised to kill tens of thousands of criminals and end crime within six months. His domestic policy has focused on combating the illegal drug trade by initiating the Philippine Drug War. According to the Philippine National Police the death total passed 7,000 in January 2017, after which the police stopped publishing data. Following criticism from United Nations human rights experts that extrajudicial killings had increased since his election, Duterte threatened to withdraw the Philippines from the UN and form a new organization with China and African nations. He has declared his intention to pursue an "independent foreign policy", and sought to distance the Philippines from the United States and European nations and pursue closer ties with China and Russia.

Read More

Francisca Reyes-Aquino Ibu Tari Rakyat Filipina

Francisca Reyes-Aquino (9 Maret 1899 - 21 November 1983) adalah seorang penari rakyat dan akademisi Filipina yang terkenal karena penelitiannya tentang tarian rakyat Filipina. Dia adalah penerima Penghargaan Merit dari Republik dan Ramon Magsaysay Award dan ditunjuk sebagai Artis Nasional Filipina untuk Tari. Francisca secara anumerta merasa tersanjung dengan google doodle-nya yang dirancang dari tarian tradisional Filipina-nya yang populer dan diresmikan pada 9 Maret 1919, karena sesekali ulang tahunnya yang ke 120 tahun untuk sumbangan dari sangat bagus dalam tarian Filipina.

Di antara karya-karya Reyes-Aquino yang paling terkenal adalah penelitiannya tentang tarian dan lagu daerah sebagai asisten mahasiswa di Universitas Filipina (UP). Mengejar studi pascasarjana, ia memulai pekerjaannya pada 1921 dengan bepergian ke barrios terpencil di Luzon Tengah dan Utara. Dia menerbitkan tesis pada tahun 1926 yang berjudul Tarian dan Permainan Rakyat Filipina di mana dia mencatat tentang bentuk-bentuk perayaan lokal, ritual dan olahraga yang sebelumnya tidak tercatat. Tesisnya dibuat dengan guru dan instruktur taman bermain dari lembaga publik dan swasta dalam pikiran. Pekerjaan ini diperluas dengan dukungan resmi dari Presiden UP Jorge Bocobo pada tahun 1927. Ia kemudian bertugas di universitas sebagai bagian dari fakultas selama 18 tahun.

Dia menjabat sebagai pengawas pendidikan jasmani di Biro Pendidikan pada tahun 1940-an. Badan pendidikan mendistribusikan karyanya dan mengadaptasi pengajaran tarian rakyat dalam upaya untuk meningkatkan kesadaran di kalangan pemuda Filipina tentang warisan budaya mereka. Kemudian Presiden Ramon Magsaysay menganugerahkannya Penghargaan Penghargaan Republik pada tahun 1954 untuk “kontribusinya yang luar biasa terhadap kemajuan budaya Filipina”. Reyes-Aquino juga memiliki buku-buku lain yang diterbitkan termasuk: Tarian Nasional Filipina (1946), Senam untuk Anak Perempuan (1947), Langkah dan Musik Dansa Dasar (1948), Tarian Rakyat Asing (1949), Tarian untuk Semua Acara (1950), Peragaan Bermain di Taman Bermain (1951), dan Tarian Rakyat Filipina , Volume I hingga VI. Reyes-Aquino juga menerima pengakuan untuk karya-karyanya seperti Penghargaan Ramon Magsaysay untuk Layanan Pemerintah pada tahun 1962 dan penunjukannya sebagai Artis Nasional Filipina untuk Tari pada tahun 1973.


Francisca Reyes-Aquino (March 9, 1899 - November 21, 1983) was a Filipino folk dancer and academic noted for her research on Philippine folk dance. She is a recipient of the Republic Award of Merit and the Ramon Magsaysay Award and is a designated National Artist of the Philippines for Dance. Among Reyes-Aquino's most noted works is her research on folk dances and songs as a student assistant at the University of the Philippines (UP). Pursuing her graduate studies, she started her work in the 1921 traveling to remote barrios in Central and Northern Luzon.

She published a thesis in 1926 entitled Philippine Folk Dances and Games where she noted on previously unrecorded forms of local celebration, ritual and sports. Her thesis was made with teachers and playground instructors from both public and private institutions in mind.[2] This work was expanded with the official support of UP President Jorge Bocobo in 1927. She then served at the university as part of the faculty for 18 years. She served as supervisor of physical education at the Bureau of Education in the 1940s. The education body distributed her work and adapted the teaching of folk dancing in an effort to promote awareness among the Filipino youth regarding their cultural heritage. Then President Ramon Magsaysay conferred her the Republic Award of Merit in 1954 for her “outstanding contribution toward the advancement of Filipino culture”.

Reyes-Aquino also had other books published including: Philippine National Dances (1946), Gymnastics for Girls (1947), Fundamental Dance Steps and Music (1948), Foreign Folk Dances (1949), Dances for all Occasion (1950), Playground Demonstration (1951), and Philippine Folk Dances, Volumes I to VI. Reyes-Aquino also received recognition for her works such as the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Government Service in 1962 and her designation as National Artist of the Philippines for Dance in 1973.

Read More

Imelda Marcos - Presiden Ferdinand Marcos

Imelda Romuáldez Marcos (lahir di Manila, Filipina, 2 Juli 1929; umur 89 tahun), adalah seorang politisi Filipina dan istri dari Presiden Filipina yang kesepuluh Ferdinand Marcos. Dengan kekuasaan politik suaminya yang semakin besar, Imelda menempati berbagai posisi di pemerintahan hingga tahun 1986. Imelda adalah politisi pertama yang terpilih sebagai anggota dari badan perancang undang-undang Filipina dalam tiga lokasi geografis (Manila, Leyte, Ilocos Norte). Pada tahun 2010, Imelda terpilih untuk menjadi anggota Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Filipina yang mewakili distrik kedua dari Ilocos Norte. Imelda terkadang dipanggil sebagai Kupu-kupu Baja atau Kupu-kupu Besi. Imelda seringkali diingat sebagai simbol keroyalan dari kekuasaan politik suaminya, seperti koleksi sepatunya yang berjumlah 2700 pasang.

Suaminya Ferdinand Edralín Marcos (lahir di Sarrat, Ilocos Norte, 11 September 1917 – meninggal di Honolulu, Hawaii, Amerika Serikat, 28 September 1989 pada umur 72 tahun) adalah Presiden kesepuluh Filipina. Ia menjabat dari 30 Desember 1965 hingga 25 Februari 1986. Marcos lulus dari Fakultas Hukum Universitas Filipina dengan gelar cum laude pada tahun 1939. Ia turut berperang melawan Jepang dalam Perang Dunia II dan memperoleh penghargaan atas jasa-jasanya selama perang. Pada tahun 1954, ia menikah dengan Imelda Romuáldez yang kelak akan membantunya dalam kampanye presidennya. Ia kemudian bergabung dengan Partai Nacionalista, dan bersama dengan calon wakil presidennya Fernando Lopez, ia mengalahkan presiden Diosdado Macapagal dalam pemilu 1965.

Marcos adalah presiden Filipina pertama yang terpilih untuk menjabat selama dua masa bakti berturut-turut secara penuh. Pada tahun 1972, ia mendirikan rezim otoriter yang memperbolehkannya tetap berkuasa hingga rezim tersebut dihapus pada 1981, dengan menggunakan hukum darurat militer sebagai alat untuk menekan oposisi. Ia kemudian dilantik kembali pada tahun yang sama untuk menjabat masa bakti selama enam tahun yang diwarnai pengaturan politik yang tidak baik, masalah kesehatan, serta pelanggaran hak asasi manusia oleh pihak militer dan korupsi yang merajalela dalam pemerintahan.

Pada masa inilah, terjadilah kasus pembunuhan pemimpin oposisi Benigno Aquino, Jr., yang terjadi tahun 1983. Hal ini mulai memicu ketidakpuasan publik terhadap pemerintahannya. Secara umum, rezim Marcos sama dengan rezim Orde Baru di Indonesia, dengan karakteristik yang hampir sama. Marcos memiliki visi Bagong Lipunan (Masyarakat baru), di mana doktrinnya adalah "orang miskin dan kaya harus bekerjasama satu sama lain untuk menuju satu tujuan masyarakat dan mencapai kebebasan melalui kesadaran diri". Karakter rezim ini yang serupa Orde Baru adalah lebih menekankan pembangunan ekonomi negara, yang banyak memanfaatkan pinjaman dari luar negeri.

Pada tahun 1986, ia terpilih untuk keempat kalinya dalam sebuah pemilu yang diduga dipengaruhi kecurangan. Marcos akhirnya diturunkan dari jabatannya sebagai presiden dalam Revolusi EDSA, sebuah revolusi yang damai di bawah pimpinan Corazon Aquino (janda Benigno Aquino), pada tahun yang sama. Bersama dengan istrinya, Imelda, Marcos melarikan diri ke Hawaii. Di sana ia dituduh menggelapkan uang negara dan pinjaman dari luar negeri untuk kepentingannya dan kroni-kroninya (terutama pinjaman dari Amerika Serikat, yang merupakan sekutu terdekat Filipina) dan ditemukan bersalah. Marcos meninggal dunia di Honolulu, Hawaii pada tahun 1989 akibat penyakit ginjal, jantung, dan paru-paru. Marcos pertama dikebumikan di Hawaii, sejak itu dimakamkan di kuburan besar indah di Kota Batac, provinsi Ilocos Utara.


Imelda Marcos (née Romuáldez, born 2 July 1929) is a Filipino socialite, politician, and congresswoman who was First Lady of the Philippines for 21 years, during which she and her husband had amassed about US$5-10 billion of ill-gotten wealth, the bulk of which still remains unrecovered. She married Ferdinand Marcos in 1954 and became First Lady in 1965 when he became President of the Philippines. Her behaviour of initiating numerous grand architectural projects using public funds, came to be described in common parlance as Imeldific. She and her family gained notoriety for living a lavish lifestyle during a period of economic crisis and civil unrest in the country. She spent much of her time abroad on state visits, extravagant parties, and shopping sprees, and spent much of the State's money on her personal jewelry and shoe collections. Her collection of over 1,000 pairs of luxury shoes earned her the sobriquet "Marie Antoinette, with shoes."

The People Power Revolution in February 1986 unseated the Marcoses and forced the family into exile. In 1991, President Corazon Aquino allowed the Marcos family to return to the Philippines after the 1989 death of Ferdinand Marcos. Imelda Marcos was elected four times to the House of Representatives. She, along with her husband Ferdinand, are famous for holding the Guinness World Record for the Greatest Robbery of a Government. In November 2018, she was convicted of corruption charges for her activities some forty years earlier, during her term as governor of Manila.

Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician and kleptocrat who was the tenth President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. A leading member of the far-right New Society Movement, he ruled as a dictator under martial law from 1972 until 1981. His regime was infamous for its corruption, extravagance, and brutality. Marcos claimed an active part in World War II, including fighting alongside the Americans in the Bataan Death March and being the "most decorated war hero in the Philippines". A number of his claims were found to be false and the United States Army documents described Marcos's wartime claims as "fraudulent" and "absurd".

Marcos started as an attorney, then served in the Philippine House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the Philippine Senate from 1959 to 1965. He was elected President in 1965, and presided over a growing economy during the beginning and intermediate portion of his 20-year rule, but ended in loss of livelihood, extreme poverty, and a crushing debt crisis. Marcos placed the Philippines under martial law on September 23, 1972, during which he revamped the constitution, silenced the media, and used violence and oppression against the political opposition, Muslims, communist rebels, and ordinary citizens. Martial law was ratified by 90.77% of the voters during the Philippine Martial Law referendum, 1973 though the referendum was marred with controversy.

Public outrage led to the snap elections of 1986. Allegations of mass cheating, political turmoil, and human rights abuses led to the People Power Revolution in February 1986, which removed him from power. To avoid what could have been a military confrontation in Manila between pro- and anti-Marcos troops, Marcos was advised by US President Ronald Reagan through Senator Paul Laxalt to "cut and cut cleanly", after which Marcos fled to Hawaii. Marcos was succeeded by Corazon "Cory" Aquino, widow of the assassinated opposition leader Senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. who had flown back to the Philippines to face Marcos.

According to source documents provided by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), the Marcos family stole US$5–10 billion. The PCGG also maintained that the Marcos family enjoyed a decadent lifestyle, taking away billions of dollars from the Philippines between 1965 and 1986. His wife Imelda Marcos, whose excesses during the couple's conjugal dictatorship made her infamous in her own right, spawned the term "Imeldific". Two of their children, Imee Marcos and Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., are still active in Philippine politics.

Read More

Amelita Martinez istri Presiden Fidel Ramos

Amelita "Ming" Martinez-Ramos (lahir 29 Desember 1927; umur 91 tahun) adalah istri dari presiden Filipina Fidel Ramos dan Ibu Negara Filipina ke-11 dari tahun 1992 hingga tahun 1998. Suaminya Fidel Valdez Ramos (lahir di Lingayen, Pangasinan, Filipina, 18 Maret 1928; umur 90 tahun) adalah Presiden Filipina ke-12. Ia menggantikan Corazon Aquino dan mengakhiri jabatan kepresidenannya pada tahun 1998, saat digantikan oleh Joseph Estrada. Joseph Ejercito Estrada dengan nama José Marcelo Ejército akrab dipanggil 'Erap' adalah seorang aktor film populer di Filipina. Ia menjabat sebagai Presiden Filipina ke-13 pada periode 30 Juni 1998-20 Januari 2001.

Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco Aquino (lahir di Paniqui, Tarlac, Filipina , 25 Januari 1933 – meninggal di Makati, 1 Agustus 2009 pada umur 76 tahun), dikenal luas dengan 'Cory Aquino', adalah Presiden Filipina pada 1986 – 1992. Dialah wanita Asia pertama yang tampil sebagai presiden wanita di dunia. Wanita ini adalah istri dari tokoh oposisi yang populer, senator Benigno Aquino Jr.. Suaminya terbunuh sesaat setelah mendarat di Bandara Internasional Manila ketika kembali ke negaranya pada 21 Agustus 1983. Ia kemudian difigurkan oleh kalangan oposisi untuk menentang kekuasaan otokratik yang dilakukan Presiden Ferdinand Marcos.


Amelita "Ming" Jara Martinez-Ramos (born January 29, 1926) is the wife of Fidel V. Ramos–the twelfth President of the Philippines–and was the eleventh First Lady of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. Aside from being a sportswoman, Ramos is also recognised as a talented amateur pianist, performing on several occasions with the Executive Combo Band of Raul Manglapus. She also received considerable public sympathy in 1993, when the Philippine Daily Inquirer published a front-page story revealing an alleged past affair between her husband and the socialite Baby Arenas. In the early hours of 27 January 2011, Ramos' daughter, Josephine Ramos-Samartino, died of lung cancer at the age of 54 at The Medical City in Pasig, Metro Manila. The former President admitted shortly after that Josephine, the second of their five daughters, was a smoker for 25 years who had only disclosed her illness to the family five weeks before her death.

Fidel Valdez Ramos popularly known as FVR and Eddie, is a retired Filipino general and politician who served as the 12th President of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. During his six years in office, Ramos was widely credited and admired by many for revitalizing and renewing international confidence in the Philippine economy. At age 90, he is currently the oldest living former Philippine President. Prior to his election as president, Ramos served in the cabinet of President Corazón Aquino, first as chief-of-staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and later as Secretary of National Defense from 1986 to 1991. He was the father of the Philippine Army's Special Forces and the Philippine National Police Special Action Force.

During the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution, Ramos was hailed as a hero by many Filipinos for his decision to break away from the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos and pledge allegiance and loyalty to the newly established government of President Aquino. Thirty years later, he however shifted to the side of Rodrigo Duterte, who he persuaded to run for president against Aquino's ally, Mar Roxas, and his nemesis, Miriam Defensor Santiago. Ramos also supported the Philippine Drug War.

Read More