The Southern Tagalog 10 was a group of activists abducted and "

disappeared An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person by a state or political organization, or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organiza ...

" in 1977 during martial law in the Philippines under

Proclamation No. 1081 Proclamation No. 1081 was the document which contained Ordinance Power of the President of the Philippines#Proclamations, formal proclamation of martial law in the Philippines by President of the Philippines, President Ferdinand Marcos, as announ ...

issued by President of Philippines

Ferdinand E. Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

. Of the 10 university students and professors who were abducted, only three, Virgilio Silva, Salvador Panganiban, and Modesto Sison, "surfaced" later after being killed by suspected agents of the state. Two of those who surfaced were apparently

summarily executed A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...

. The rest were never found.

Background

The victims, most of them in their early twenties, all belonged to a network of community organizations in the

Southern Tagalog Southern Tagalog ( fil, Timog Katagalugan, also known colloquially as ''Rehiyong Timog Tagalog''), designated as Region IV, was an administrative region in the Philippines that comprised the current regions of Calabarzon and Mimaropa, the provi ...

region, Philippines. They were abducted in late July 1977 at the

Makati Medical Center Makati Medical Center (MMC), also known as Makati Med, is a tertiary hospital in Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines with more than 600 beds. The hospital was founded on May 31, 1969. The hospital is owned and operated by Medical Doctors Inc., a ...

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...

. The incident is believed to be the single biggest case of involuntary disappearance during martial law. Bonifacio Ilagan, brother of one of the victims and vice chair of Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (an organization that works for the welfare of political detainees), described the abduction as "the single biggest case of involuntary disappearance and summary execution perpetrated by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the entire history of the Marcos martial law in the Philippines."

Members

The ten individuals known as the Southern Tagalog 10 are: *

Cristina Catalla Melania Cristina Catalla (born December 25, 1950 — disappeared on July 31, 1977) was an anti-martial law activist who belonged to a network of community organizations in the Southern Tagalog region in the Philippines whose disappearance on July 31 ...

* Gerardo "Gerry" Faustino *

Rizalina Ilagan Rizalina "Lina" P. Ilagan (born June 19, 1954—disappeared on July 31, 1977) was an anti-martial law activist who belonged to a network of community organizations in the Southern Tagalog region in the Philippines. She was abducted by state secur ...

* Ramon Jasul * Salvador Panganiban * Jessica Sales * Emmanuel Salvacruz * Virgilio Silva * Modesto “Bong” Sison * Erwin de la Torre The names of Catalla, Faustino, Rizalina Ilagan, Jasul, Sales, and Sison are included on the

Bantayog ng mga Bayani The Bantayog ng mga Bayani (), sometimes simply referred to as the Bantayog, is a monument, museum, and historical research center in Quezon City, Philippines, which honors the martyrs and heroes of the struggle against the dictatorship of for ...

's Wall of Remembrance for martyrs and heroes of martial law.

In popular culture

The play ''Pagsambang Bayan (People’s Worship),'' written by Bonifacio Ilagan, is dedicated to the members of the Southern Tagalog 10. It was first staged in September 1977 at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

(U.P.) by the U.P. Repertory Company under the direction of

Behn Cervantes Benjamín Roberto "Behn" H. Cervantes (August 25, 1938 – August 13, 2013) was a Filipino artist and activist. He was highly regarded as a theater pioneer, teacher, and progressive thinker who was detained multiple times during martial law in the ...

. Its staging led to the arrest of Cervantes and the play's musical director. The play won the Palihang Aurelio V. Tolentino and has since been performed hundreds of times. The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) cites the play as a "major work in Philippine theater." A musical version of the play was staged in 2017 by director

Joel Lamangan Joel Lamangan (born September 21, 1952) is a Filipino film director, television director and actor. His award-winning films includes '' The Flor Contemplacion Story'', ''Sidhi'', '' Deathrow'', ''Hubog'', '' Aishte Imasu 1941'', '' Blue Moon'' an ...

at the

Polytechnic University of the Philippines , mottoeng = ''Light of the Nation'' , type = Public coeducational research higher education institution , established = October 19, 1904 , closed = , religious_affiliation = ...

and the CCP. On television, actress

Bianca Umali Maria Isadora Bianca Soler Umali (; born March 2, 2000), professionally known as Bianca Umali, is a Filipino actress, television host, singer, dancer, and endorser. Early and personal life Maria Isadora Bianca Soler Umali was born on March ...

played Rizalina Ilagan in the

GMA Network GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...

docudrama ''Alaala: A Martial Law Special,'' which first aired on September 17, 2017.

References

{{reflist Southern Tagalog 10 Enforced disappearances in the Philippines Presidency of Ferdinand Marcos History of the Philippines (1965–1986) Martial law under Ferdinand Marcos Marcos martial law victims Political repression in the Philippines University of the Philippines Los Baños people honored at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani

Background

Members

In popular culture

See also

References