Batas Militar (Martial Law)

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos said he declared Martial Law in 1972 to save democracy. In the next 14 years, he did the opposite. He curtailed freedoms and had absolute power over the country. He jailed his political opponents, padlocked Congress, crippled the Supreme Court, and muzzled media. The dictator enforced a reign of terror with the military and police. Torture, disappearances, and “salvaging” were widespread. Together with his wife, Imelda Marcos, his relatives and cronies, they stole the country’s coffers to satisfy their insatiable desire and ambition. This landed the Marcoses in the Guiness Book of World Records as the world’s biggest thief.

Batas Militar is the first comprehensive documentary about Martial Law. It also featured testimonies of the heroes, villains and victims. It’s also the story of the Filipino people who fought to reclaim democracy and the end of the Marcos dictatorship in a bloodless revolt known the world over as the People Power Revolution