Disinformation Nation

Propaganda about a former dictator may have made Filipinos more comfortable with martial law under Duterte

- Brennan Weiss

AT A CAFÉ in Baguio City, Philippines, on the island of Luzon, Mary Lou Marigza’s voice trembles as she recounts her experience as a political detainee under then-dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who imposed martial law in the Philippines from 1972 until 1981. Marigza was tortured, mostly by electrocution, for 13 months for organizing anti-government protests.

When the current Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte, declared martial law on the southern island of Mindanao in May, it reminded Marigza of her time in detention. Like many Filipinos, she believes Duterte may extend military rule nationwide. Already, he has threatened to jail martial law critics and dismiss Supreme Court verdicts that challenge his authority.

Marigza is dismayed by the public’s meek response since martial law began on Mindanao, which is home to nearly a quarter of the country’s population. “Duterte is still a popular president,” she says. “There’s not even panic or concern. It seems like it’s just our destiny.”

Not every Filipino feels the same way about martial law or Duterte. Nearly 30 years after Marcos’s death, a powerful propaganda campaign by the Marcos family and its allies has led many Filipinos to see life under Marcos as a kind of “golden age” for the Philippines. That makes it easier to accept a similar authoritarian government under Duterte. Fifty-seven percent of Filipinos support the declaration, according to a Social Weather Stations survey in June. Duterte polls even better: Another recent survey says 78 percent of Filipinos are satisfied with him.