Monday, August 22, 2005

Remembering Ninoy

Hi guys! Yesterday we commemorated the death anniversary of former senator Benigno Aquino Jr. who was assasinated while descending the tarmac of the Manila International Airport. Ninoy, as he is fondly called by friends and family was returning from exile in the United States. Though he was discouraged several times by the Marcos government from returning to the Philippines to the point that he was refused issuance of a passport and visa, he still found a way to return to his native land. A few minutes before landing, he held a press conference inside the plane, and in what seemed to most as premonition, began instructing the reporters to be "very ready with hand cameras, because this action can become very fast. In a matter of minutes, it would be all over and i may not have a chance to talk to you again after this". True enough, a few minutes after the plane landed, he was shot even before he was able to set foot on his native soil. Many historians claim that his death served as the fire that ignited people to revolt three years alter, but for many, he was more than just that --- he was the personification of everything Filipino.

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