Hey guys, I know I don’t post much in this blog anymore and I am not exactly sure who will see this but I’m posting this because today is the Philippine Presidential Elections and, just like what other people here are already saying, we’re fighting for our lives right now.

We are fighting against the return of dictatorship in the country. We are fighting against the continuation of corruption and injustice. We are fighting for a better future. We are fighting, so that we may finally know peace.

Today, multiple issues regarding the elections have come up. Vote-Counting Machines (VCMs) “malfunctioning”, SD cards missing, people getting PAID for voting for the dictator’s son and his party, and more. Even the commission in charge of ENSURING FAIR ELECTIONS is failing to fully understand the grasp said issues, wasting people’s time and votes.

If you do find this post and read it, all I ask is that you share the news about the Philippines. Anything about today (May 9, 2022), about Halalan 2022/PH Elections 2022, about BBM and the Marcos Family, about Leni Robredo, Kiko Pangilinan, Chel Diokno and the rest of Robredo’s senatorial slate (+ Neri Colmenares),

and if this inspires you to learn everything else, then please do.

We are asking for your help, not in votes, but in sharing what is happening here to the rest of the world. Whatever happens, whatever the results are, we want the whole world to see what is going on. (But thank you to the foreign news outlets who have been speaking on this).

All the Filipinos are asking for is a fair government, where lives are recognized and uplifted. We cannot be kept in the dark again, we have had enough.

And if we need to meet in EDSA once again, then so be it.

The state of the Philippines after the May 9, 2022 National Elections (Part 2)

continuing from here

"why are there so many tweets?" I NEED YOU TO UNDERSTAND THE GRAVITY OF OUR SITUATION, ESPECIALLY FROM THE FILIPINOS' PERSPECTIVE. this might as well be the only time I get to tell about it too especially given that we have a history of being silenced and shot down by our political abusers. read my messages. then try to understand. then read them all again. I need you to understand and know this well. almost begging, even, because we are in a state of turmoil and we may have to fight for our rights — we might have fight for our lives and if anyone asks what happened, and if anyone so dares to tell you that we were all fools- i hope by then you will have known the deep struggle we had to go through just to fight for ourselves and the very president we wanted to have Filipino resilience should not be celebrated. Accountability must be demanded.

[referring to the Commission on Elections] You are rich in funds. Even if- all we want is ONE reliable VCM (Vote Counting Machine). That's it. That's all we want. Voting should not last beyond 10 minutes, but how many hours have we been in line here? The resiliency of Filipinos is not an honorary badge. We should not be used to being sweaty, tired, and hungry.

— from ABS-CBN News Official Twitter

With this in mind, there have been some speculation that PayPal might pull out from the Philippines like they pulled out from Ukraine due to the Ukraine/Russia conflicts.

A freelance illustrator had to personally reach out to PayPal to clarify this.

I would like to end this with an archive of documents, news articles, and resources comprehensively detailing the Marcos era, especially during the Martial Law. He has committed heinous crimes against the Filipino people as well as robbed us of ₱203B which should have long been paid in their estate taxes.

Please help me spread awareness. I cannot trust the international media and news outlets to properly tell our experiences without dubbing us collectively as fools or idiots who let a dictator's son have power. I cannot trust them to tell how we fought so hard and accumulated too many supporters only to be let down by manipulation and exploitation.

That will be all, and thank you for reading.

i’ll share this one last tidbit because i’m scared to get hunted down by the government, but i trust tumblr anyway- but there already have been rumors of people getting redtagged in the philippines for being vocal about this elections

what’s redtagging? wikipedia describes it as “the malicious blacklisting of individuals or organizations critical or not fully supportive of the actions of a sitting government administration in the country.” redtagging is used to mark down names of activists or, honestly, anyone opposing the government’s beliefs for potential arrests, or in worst case scenarios, extrajudicial killings. 

this has been happening in the philippines for a long time, but it’s only recently reemerged during the reign of duterte. while i can’t compile all redtagging cases, here’s an example thread i made last year that highlighted some cases from april-may. it can give you the gist of how it works. and with the suppression of press freedom (google maria ressa, ceo of rappler, a filipino news site, who got arrested. she was eventually awarded the nobel peace prize for speaking out), there are many redtagging cases that are not spoken about. a friend from a certain university has talked to me about many of their classmates immediately being targeted. many filipinos are in danger

and i’m already hearing that the gov is trying to redtag more people who are just VOCAL about this elections. i was not even gonna post this because i was scared something’ll happen, but i think people deserve to know what’s going on before i stop posting about stuff completely.

freedom of speech is a privilege in the philippines. now that sara duterte, daughter of the current president, is going to head the department of education, it’s important to continue uplifting, supporting, and sharing news and posts by filipinos. bbm is a son of a dictator tyrant who murdered and tortured tens of thousands, and they will revise our history books despite years of fighting against them.

again, we are risking our lives trying to post about this, so if you see any post about the elections, it’s important to stay informed. it’s important to get mad at our government on our behalf because at some point, we won’t be able to. here’s some good posts i’ve found that summarize the elections/the marcos family’s wrongdoings pretty well (1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5). and if you have the audacity to go “why the hell are filipinos so stupid to vote for this man?” please read this.

and when marcos gets fully instated, i want you to cause a ruckus, a riot. we can’t let another marcos and duterte ruin our country once again.

Resources on Current Events in the Philippines

Okay, as I mentioned, I don’t want to actively explain every detail I know about the current situation, but I have here below a couple of sources you can look at if you’re interested to know more.

A thread explaining what’s happening and what had happened in the past

An overview of the 1986 People Revolution

Confession from a BBM troll whistleblower during a radio show

Full Magic 89.9 radio show episode including the content above (talks a lot about the implications of the current results, the martial law era, and the previous administration)

Confession from another BBM troll originally posted on reddit

Firehouse of Falsehood strategy meant to manipulate voters

A thread about the environmental Implications of the Marcos-Duterte tandem

Ang Mga Alingawngaw Sa Panahon Ng Pagpapasya (Echoes in the Midst of Indecision) short film

Torture methods utilized during the martial law

Young Martial Law Victims

Rebranding by the Marcoses with the help of Cambridge Analytica

Over 5000 pages of official documents, books, and news articles about Martial Law acquired from this link. (make sure to secure an offline copy because there is a possibility that this will eventually be taken down knowing their knack for historical revisionism)

About the death of 17-year old Kian delos Santos during Duterte’s war on drugs (his daughter is currently the leading VP candidate) and How the Duterte government underreported drug war killings

List of Online Legal Assistance and Initiatives for Filipinos (keep this just in case)

If you all can, try to also secure a copy of Conjugal Dictatorship (by Primitivo Mijares) [free and full copy here] and Dekada ‘70 (by Lualhati Bautista)

It is also highly recommended to watch The Kingmaker documentary. Links of free copies we’ve found so far: from youtube (only available in the Philippines), from vimeo (tagalog version), and from bilibili (english version available anywhere) -- links provided by @deflatedball

Liway (2018) Full Film free copy

Imelda & Ferdinand: Exile in Hawaii Documentary (2019)

Portraits of Mosquito Press (2015)

Barber’s Tales (2013) Full Film

Batas Militar (1997) Full Film

Eskapo (1995) Full Film

Imelda (2003) Full Film

Marcos: A Malignant Spirit (1986)

Coup d’etat: The Philippines Revolt (1986) Documentary

Signos (1983) Full Film

Prometheus Unbound, a Marcos-era Resistance poem with a hidden message written by martial law-era student and activist Pete Lacaba (using the pseudonym Ruben Cuevas).

If you don't know what's going on the in the Philippines, the short answer is that our elections happened on May 9, 2022 and the results are an embarrassment to our history and we, as a country, are fucked. Currently in the lead, based on the unofficial and partial results of our commission on elections (COMELEC), is the son of a dictator we ousted in 1986, whose family has yet to payback the BILLIONS they owe the people and apologies for literal YEARS WORTH of crimes against humanity. Instead, they gave history revisionism through TikTok and fake news to the masses, manipulating voters to think the years of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. were the best in the Philippines, when it was anything but. Now, his son Ferdinand "Bong Bong" Marcos Jr. (BBM) is being pushed into power when he has NO DEGREE, NO CREDENTIALS, AND HAS MULTIPLE CASES OF TAX EVASION, and that is just the tip of the iceberg for this family of thieves and plunderers. According to COMELEC's partial and unofficial results, BBM's winning over Leni Robredo, the current Vice President of the country, who has an amazing track record as VP for 6 years, an ACTUAL POST-GRAD DEGREE, and is an attorney.

I refuse to accept this result, not because Leni is my candidate, but because there have been multiple reports and evidence of around 1,800+ Vote Counting Machines (VCMs) "malfunctioning", missing or corrupted SD cards, vote-buying for Marcos and his party, some reported attacks at voting precincts, and just mass electoral fraud. COMELEC has done jack shit about all these accusations, even claiming they've received no complaints about the election when we know that's a lie. COMELEC also dismissed several disqualification cases against BBM just today, May 10, 2022. They even transmitted the unofficial results at lightning speed last night when this has not happened before and we know for a fact people were still lined up at precincts waiting to vote, some even until 3 AM, because of the aforementioned broken machines and SD cards and they refused to leave their ballots in the care of staff at the precinct for fear of tampering with their ballots. They claim it's because they were "prepared", but it's clear to us that this election has been bought and rigged in their favor.

We have hundreds of youth protesting these unofficial results and they are already being labeled "militants", when all they carry are cardboard signs and their passion to give the country a leader it deserves, while the opposition is preemptively celebrating and trying to declare themselves the winner when the fight is far from over. We are still waiting for official results, but we are not satisfied with this election. They have failed to ensure it is fair. We will not acknowledge a presidency built upon lies, deceit, and oppression.

Fuck Marcos and, if need be, kitakits sa EDSA🌸

important for Filipinos and OFWs especially

Our elders and my parents aren't on Tumblr, but I need to say this...

To the victims of martial law, to my parents and the people who participated in the People Power Revolution (Feb 22, 1986 – Feb 25, 1986) to fell a dictator, to every hero who has bled for a country and a people that you deemed worthy of dying and fighting for...

We are sorry... 🙏

We did our best to stand for good and honest governance, to campaign for a presidential candidate who is worthy of the seat, to spread facts and straight information, to help others make the right decision for the nation.

I, at least, believe I made the right choice. I voted for the candidate with the right credentials, for the woman whose heart is in the right place, with a clean track record on governance as Vice President.

Ms. Leni Robredo and her entire team didn't lose today. When this election ends, she gets to settle down and live a quiet life with her daughters.

But the Philippines has lost... And it's so fucking heartbreaking that so many have chosen a thief, a liar, and a criminal to be the next president.

(And don't even get me started on the Senators... Oooh boy xD It's a circus of unqualified people in there. *cough cough*

Side note: As a brief example of what we're dealing with. The majority of people voted for a freaking action movie star because he's good-looking over Attorney. Chel Diokno -- a board-certified lawyer and educator who is all about offering FREE legal assistance to anyone who needs it.

Our future lawmakers are going to be people with graft and corruption cases, and too few actual lawyers or experts in medicine and health, agriculture, crisis management, housing, local governance, family, and human rights, etc.)

Ya'll this country is fucked. xD

Disclaimer: I don't do political posts on my Tumblr, because I strongly dislike it, and I won't ever do this again. But this is the only time I will... If it gets taken down (and not by me), 🤣 then it's obvious what's up. Because this election marks a turning point in my country, and the results just suck.

It reeks of fraud, dishonesty, and spite. And I hope to the heavens that this election is a fraud instead of the people truly choosing Ferdinand Marcos Jr...

Because if it's the latter, then this country is doomed. It will go up in flames... And there's nothing we can do but brace for the inevitable collapse.

More than 70,000 people imprisoned, more than 30,000 sexually and physically abused, and more than 3,000 killed during the Marcos regime. More than 30,000 killed extrajudicially on Duterte's so-called "war on drugs" for the past six years and more than 60,000 COVID-19 deaths due to his administration's incompetency and lack of a decent healthcare plan.

Only for the people to elect their son and daughter into the top two positions in the Philippines.

All these lives diminished into numbers. All these deaths for nothing.

on the 2022 philippine elections

Originally posted under @annuka‘s blog here

One thing non-Filipinos and Filipino diaspora should know is there’s been a concerted effort to reimagine the 20-year Marcos dictatorship as a purely benevolent effort that ushered a golden age into the Philippines. It’s not. Thousands of human rights violations, billions of dollars in debt, and hundreds of cronies still in power spawned from that dark age.

Along with the disinformation campaign, there’s a revival of support for the Marcoses among the demographic of middle-aged to older people who didn’t suffer from the atrocities of the dictatorship. Authoritarian nostalgia. Then there are the youth who earnestly believe in the authoritarian propaganda sown with anti-intellectualism, mistrust of journalistic institutions, and academia. It also doesn’t help that there’s strong regional hegemony and oligarchic families who were either Marcos cronies or have vested interest in supporting this particular political dynasty over others. It should be no secret, especially to US-based people, that conglomerates such as Alliance Global and dynasties like the Cojuangcos (et. al) have significant ties to politics that allow them to influence lawmaking and more. I don’t think I have to spell out the significant economic desperation that will descend on the Philippines—and investors are already hesitant to put any stakes in our country.

In terms of international politics, the Philippines rests in a strategic area in the middle of Asia and the Pacific. We’ve long been used as a base by the US, and due to the Duterte presidency, we’re losing our sovreignty—which was supposed to be upheld with the decision by the International Tribunal Court in the Hague—over the West Philippine Sea to China. There was also a concerted effort to improve relations with Russia (though there’s some treadback on that front). In other words, the Philippines is being passed from the US to other countries. And given that the Marcoses are held in contempt by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (and banned from US territories), it’s not implausible to see relations further deteriorate. The best thing that Filipinos can hope for, imo, is an incompetent presidency where nothing of substance happens. It’s no secret that Ferdinand Marcos Jr./Bongbong Marcos has done nothing of real impact in his time as a senator. But if he’s steered and influenced, or worse, enacts the same policies as his dictator father, the Philippines will suffer greater losses than it already has. Or just plain steal the $10 billion or more plundered by his dictator father back. I’m sorry for the incoherent thoughts. I’m just sick and tired of this happening again and again. I’ve gone through several national elections already, and I get why leaders in the opposition are tired and jaded. I understand why veteran journalists march on, unfeeling.

We have a saying here: Pilipinas, ang hirap mong mahalin. It’s hard to love the Philippines. And it’s only going to get harder now.

All I ask at this point, to everyone who don’t live in the Philippines, is to not lose the will to fight. Help us fight for future. Don’t let us be a memory.

IMPORTANT

Although I don't post my art and such online and much less hold commissions but as a Filipino artist myself, please do not cancel your art commissions with Filipino artists!

Several Filipinos benefit from the money they earn from the commissions they work on for their clients and especially from international clients. I understand that our situation with the elections may make you hesitant with engaging with us at the moment but that's especially why we need your help! Your continued support and help will greatly benefit these Filipino artists during trying times.

Please fact-check and research before canceling. Just because the son of an ex-dictator is the front runner of the presidential elections, it does not in any way mean that these artists support or voted for him, his campaign and allies. (Not to mention the highly speculated possibility of rigged and unfair election and election fraud happening.)

However if you wish to cancel despite all of this, your decision is fully respected but at least help spread the news and facts about what is happening in our country and educate yourselves.

More than ever, we Filipinos need your support. We are fighting for our country and we will do whatever it takes for change.

IT IS NOT THE ARTIST'S FAULT.

This might be my last post for the night (char early morning na but anyway), so I will just post this:

To any and every non-filo here on Tumblr, whether you are my mutual or just someone who happens to see this post,

I hope this encourages you to not only look into what is happening here in the Philippines, but also into what is happening in your own country. In your own home.

The state of the Philippines after the May 9, 2022 National Elections (Part 1)

as of May 11, 2022, 8:57 PM

The following post was initially written in Discord as a long string of messages for my overseas/international/foreign internet friends.

The original messages have been kept intact with some grammatical corrections as well as formatting modifications and minor additions for better emphasis.

Indented texts are the ones which were originally Discord messages while non-indented texts are new additions.

With that aside, the content remains the same as it was initially sent to my friends.

Now, without further ado, let me begin.

hi it has been two days since May 9 it has been two days since my country's national elections right now we're in massive chaos because the son (Bongbong Marcos) of a past dictator (Ferdinand E. Marcos) is threatening to become our next president // as well as the daughter (Sara Duterte) of our last president (Rodrigo Duterte) becoming vice president policital dynasties, yall. fucking hell anyway you might be wondering, "is Isa ok? how is she faring?" I'm still fairly okay, but with the way I've been vocal about the bullshit going on I might not be able to be online any longer this country has a history of its own people being silenced by those in power international media will tell you that we voted the dictator's son into presidency and that we are fools. do not let them convince you. we fought so hard. we fought so hard for the only woman running for presidency and we accumulated so many supporters and yet we failed. wait, no. we were cheated. how? because of the shit we call corruption and greed corruption and greed and power and MANIPULATION OUR MASSES WERE MANIPULATED INTO VOTING THE DICTATOR'S SON. lucky are the ones who are born in the middle class, and yet luckier are those who were born rich. unfortunate are those who were born so poor that their main priority is living day by day. votes were bought. machines were rigged. servers were hacked. just for the dictator's son to be called president. just to enable a new abuser and give him power. please do not let the media convince you that we were fools. we fought so hard for the right presidential candidate not to be thought like this.

compilation thread of election inconveniences, offenses, and violations

thread of movies and documentaries about the Marcoses and the era of Martial Law under Ferdinand E. Marcos

watch The Kingmaker for free [available Philippines only as per Lauren Greenfield's intentions]

The post continues here due to Tumblr's 10-photo limit.

THE SON OF A DICTATOR AND MASS MURDERER WHO ENLISTED MARTIAL LAW IS WINNING PRESIDENT AND THE DAUGHTER OF A MASS EXTRA JUDICIAL KILLER AND MACHISMO PRESIDENT IS WINNING VP. FUCK THE PHILIPPINES WHOS MARRYING ME AND GIVING ME A VISA OUTTA HERE

not sure if you'd be willing to answer this but any thoughts on the ph election right now? everything I see feels so disheartening and I don't think I can handle what appears to be the evident result

Okay. First of all, to all the others who are reading this, this has nothing to do with interactive fiction or writing in general (so if you'd like to avoid this, stop reading now), but please, please send the best of wishes for the Philippines right now.

Like the anon is implying, we’re in the midst of an election that could determine our future as a country and it is not going well at the slightest. I can't give my specific opinions about the candidates because I feel like I'm in deep enough trouble already lmao but I suppose I can express how much I hate the fact that those in charge of managing the election are turning a blind eye on all the issues (vote buying, machine problems, manipulation of the ballots, and all the obvious violence that have been transpiring all over the country for ONE single day).

I don't know what the others would feel, but I am really not up to seeing another round of extrajudicial killings (especially as someone who has an indigenous heritage). So please, everyone, send your best wishes/prayers for the country, even if it's wholly undeserved. We're a small nation, and perhaps not one that matters to those who are in the West, but these are also people who have faced oppression for countless years, and we need that to change for once.

God only knows how much we as the Filipino youth have been trying so hard.

No matter what happens, I’ve decided to keep working on Hollowed Minds, with everything as it is. But it will definitely be much better for me to do it without the fear of getting labeled as a rebel because of what I write.

Anyway, it’s not over, anon! And if it all comes to worst, just remember that our predecessors have gone through their own share of burdens and have faced them head on!!

And let me give you a virtual hug!!!

Prometheus Unbound

I shall never exchange my fetters for slavish servility. ‘Tis better to be chained to the rock than bound to the service of Zeus.

-Aeschylus, Promytheus Bound

Mars shall glow tonight, Artemis is out of sight. Rust in the twilight sky Colors a bloodshot eye, Or shall I say that dust Sunders the sleep of the just?

Hold fast to the gift of fire! I am rage! I am wrath! I am ire! The vulture sits on my rock, Licks at the chains that mock Emancipation’s breath, Reeks of death, death, death.

Death shall not unclench me. I am earth, wind, and sea! Kisses bestow on the brave That defy the damp of the grave And strike the chill hand of Death with the flaming sword of love.

Orion stirs. The vulture Retreats from the hard, pure Thrust of the spark that burns, Unbounds, departs, returns To pluck out of death’s fist A god who dared to resist.

- Ruben Cuevas

Russ*a deliberately not showing its citizens the truth of its invasion to Ukraine. Musk reversing Tr*mp's Twitter ban. BBM slated to win the presidential seat in the Philippines.

The world is doomed.

The new era is Weaponized Misinformation.