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Coups: A Philippine tradition?
By MA. AURORA R. FAJARDO, GMANews.TV An alleged coup plot on Friday, which the Arroyo government used as reason for declaring a state of national emergency, adds to the Philippines' long list of military unrest in the last 20 years since democracy was restored. At around noon Friday, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared a state of national emergency after the military allegedly crushed an attempt by mutinous soldiers and policemen to take over government. She warned coup plotters that they would be dealt the full force of the law once authorities get them. 
Arroyo's declaration came as the country marked the 20th anniversary of the first People Power revolt that toppled the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. This is the second most serious military-led threat to President Arroyo since she came to power, as a result of Joseph Estrada's ouster in January 2001 and after winning the elections in 2004. On July 2003, around 300 junior military soldiers led a failed mutiny at the Makati business district. The soldiers, calling themselves the Magdalo faction (based on the nom de guerre of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, first Philippine Republic president and leader of 1896 Philippine Revolution), accused the administration of corruption. The Magdalo leaders are now on trial for rebellion charges. Arroyo also faced an uprising from supporters of ousted President Joseph Estrada on May 2001, a few months after she became new president as a result of the mass demonstration dubbed EDSA 2. 
Another most coup-battered president is Corazon Aquino who survived a total of seven coup attempts throughout her six-year term. The last, on December 1, 1989, almost succeeded in overthrowing her government. The coup plotters belonged to the Reformed the Armed Forces Movement (RAM), the group of senior and junior military officers who prominenty figured in the first People Power revolt in 1986 and now being linked to the Magdalo. The Davide Commission, tasked to investigate the roots of the 1989 failed putsch, concluded that the coup makers' grievances were tied to their desire to recover the power and privileges they enjoyed during the Marcos regime. These coup attempts plunged the country into an economic crisis. But most of the coup plotters were amnestied while the first set of rebels was punished with 50 push ups. On Wednesday, February 22, the start of events commemorating People Power's 20th anniversary, Honasan and key RAM leaders said the coup is no longer the way to achieve reforms in a deeply divided country like the Philippines. Shortly after the failed Magdalo mutiny, a survey Pulse Asia conducted showed that majority of Filipinos considered the soldiers' grievances against Arroyo legitimate and justifiable. Those surveyed also recommended a "liberal treatment" of the mutineers. Overall, however, Filipinos still reject military rule despite rebel soldiers' promise of stability and development, Pulse Asia said.
Arroyo's declaration came as the country marked the 20th anniversary of the first People Power revolt that toppled the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. This is the second most serious military-led threat to President Arroyo since she came to power, as a result of Joseph Estrada's ouster in January 2001 and after winning the elections in 2004. On July 2003, around 300 junior military soldiers led a failed mutiny at the Makati business district. The soldiers, calling themselves the Magdalo faction (based on the nom de guerre of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, first Philippine Republic president and leader of 1896 Philippine Revolution), accused the administration of corruption. The Magdalo leaders are now on trial for rebellion charges. Arroyo also faced an uprising from supporters of ousted President Joseph Estrada on May 2001, a few months after she became new president as a result of the mass demonstration dubbed EDSA 2. Another most coup-battered president is Corazon Aquino who survived a total of seven coup attempts throughout her six-year term. The last, on December 1, 1989, almost succeeded in overthrowing her government. The coup plotters belonged to the Reformed the Armed Forces Movement (RAM), the group of senior and junior military officers who prominenty figured in the first People Power revolt in 1986 and now being linked to the Magdalo. The Davide Commission, tasked to investigate the roots of the 1989 failed putsch, concluded that the coup makers' grievances were tied to their desire to recover the power and privileges they enjoyed during the Marcos regime. These coup attempts plunged the country into an economic crisis. But most of the coup plotters were amnestied while the first set of rebels was punished with 50 push ups. On Wednesday, February 22, the start of events commemorating People Power's 20th anniversary, Honasan and key RAM leaders said the coup is no longer the way to achieve reforms in a deeply divided country like the Philippines. Shortly after the failed Magdalo mutiny, a survey Pulse Asia conducted showed that majority of Filipinos considered the soldiers' grievances against Arroyo legitimate and justifiable. Those surveyed also recommended a "liberal treatment" of the mutineers. Overall, however, Filipinos still reject military rule despite rebel soldiers' promise of stability and development, Pulse Asia said. 
