Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law
On Marcos’ martial law and human rights violations
Quest for Justice
This documentation pertains only to specific events relevant to the human rights class suit against President Ferdinand E. Marcos.
The litigation, filed in Hawaii under the Alien Tort Statute, was vigorously defended by his widow, Imelda Marcos, and son, Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation assigned the case to Judge Manuel L. Real, the then chief judge of the Central District of California. In 1991 the case was certified as a class action. The liability phase of the jury trial began in 1992, followed by the exemplary damage and compensatory damage phases in 1994 and 1995. The same jury, after completion of all phases of trial, returned an overall verdict for 9,539 class members for nearly 2 billion dollars. The judgment was affirmed by the Ninth Circuit in 1996 and is now a landmark in American and international human rights jurisprudence.
Almost 30 years ago, a U.S. court ruled that victims of human rights violations by the Ferdinand Marcos regime in the Philippines should be compensated. The former president's alleged graft, estimated to be as much as $10 billion by the Philippine government, set off what was arguably the most ambitious global treasure hunt of all time, as investigators and lawyers scrambled to track down the fortune.
The Human Rights Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013
The Human Rights Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013 is an unprecedented legislatioaration and Recognition Act of 2013 is an unprecedented legislation in the Philippines and Asia, with the Philippine State acknowledging its legal and moral obligation for the gross human rights violations committed by the regime of former President Ferdinand E. Marcos during martial law from 21 September 1972 to 25 February 1986 and one month before and after the period. RA 10368 declares that the State recognizes the heroism and sufferings of all Filipinos and provides reparation to the victims and o/or their families for the deaths, injuries, sufferings, deprivations and damages they suffered under the Marcos regime. The law recognized that there were civil, political and economic rights that were violated by the authoritarian regime.
The law allocated ten billion pesos (Php 10,000,000,000.00) plus accrued interest for reparation to victims of gross human rights violations during that period and for the establishment of a memorial museum and library.
The funds came from Marcos’ Swiss deposits which were transferred to the government of the Philippines by virtue of the December 10, 1997 Order of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court, adjudged by the Supreme Court of the Philippines as final and executory in Republic vs. Sandiganbayan on July 15, 2003 (G.R. No. 152154) as Marcos ill-gotten wealth and forfeited in favor of the Republic of the Philippines. The law created the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB) and the Human Rights Violations Victims’ Memorial Commission (HRVVMC).
ROLL OF VICTIMS
The Roll of Victims is the official list of Martial Law 1972-1986 era victims, including the place of incident of the violation against them, as resolved by the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB), an independent and quasi-judicial body created by R. A. 10368 to receive, evaluate, process and investigate reparation applications of Human Rights Violations Victims, as defined by R. A. 10368.
In providing financial assistance to Martial Law victims, the HRVCB, as per the HRVCB Board Resolution 002-2015 dtd March 04, 2015 Annex A “Legal Guide on Definition of Human Rights Violations and Awarding of Points Under RA 10368”, organized a point system hierarchy for the violations committed to a victim.
Human Rights Violations Victims’ Memorial Commission
Additional information can be found below regarding RA 10368 or The Human Rights Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013.