Binay disputes reports that she voted for controversial Marcos Day bill
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Nancy Binay on Wednesday clarified that she did not vote in favor of a controversial bill seeking to make the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr.'s birthday a special non-working holiday in his home province.
"Contrary to reports circulating online, I did not vote for the approval of House Bill No. 7137 which aims to declare September 11 a special non-working holiday in observance of 'President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos Day' in Ilocos Norte," a statement released by Binay to the press read. The measure, labelled by its critics as ""unconscionable," was transmitted to the Senate and was approved by the Committee on Local Government, chaired by Sen. Francis Tolentino, on Monday.
The senator further explained that she left the hybrid hearing of the committee before the bill was tackled as she had a prior commitment and was therefore not part of deliberations or voting.
"I wish to reiterate that I did not vote for the approval of the bill and will not support any bill that would cause historical revisionism," Binay said.
Senate panel scored for approving controversial measure
A group of Martial law survivors and progressive group Akbayan on Tuesday slammed the Senate panel for approving the measure, accusing them of historical revisionism and of going against existing laws.
"The committee acted as a Marcos deodorant to hide the awful stench of the dead dictator's brutal rule, tamper with history and invalidate the people's struggle against the dictatorship," Akbayan Chair Emeritus Etta Rosales said.
She further said that the bill is "diametrically opposed" to an existing law which seeks to provide reparation and recognition to victims of human rights violations during the Marcos dictatorship — or the Human Rights Victim Reparation Act of 2013. This was also pointed out by the Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto — a group of former political prisoners whose members include martial law victims and survivors.
"This is no ordinary bill of local application. This is no harmless local holiday. This bill seeks to repudiate the mandate of the 1986 People Power Uprising, whitewash the atrocities of the Marcos dictatorship and attack our sense of history," Rosales said.
Global human rights organization Amnesty International in a report said the Marcos dictatorship was marked by wanton human rights violations, logging 34,000 tortured and 3,240 killed.
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