Bantayog launches "endowment" campaign

As Bantayog ng mga Bayani celebrates the 25th year of its founding, it is time to plan for the coming decades.

Will the legacy of the anti-dictatorship struggle – defending the poor and oppressed, selfless sacrifice for the sake of the people --  live on after the martial-law generation has gone?  How can we ensure that the rising generations will continue building a nation worthy of our deepest pride?

Today's young people are getting mixed messages from the schools, mass media and the country's leaders. This is because much power has remained, uncontested, in the hands of those who profited from the Marcos regime; it is even possible now for his son to aspire for the presidency, without a single word of contrition. 

All these years, Bantayog has stood as one of the few organizations in the country that faithfully honors the heroes and martyrs of the struggle against martial law.  Not only are prominent leaders singled out, but also those little-known individuals who did their share, in every walk of life and in every city, town and village that resisted the dictatorship.

Through the efforts and contributions of the pioneers, a beautiful location has been secured, structures have been built, institutional programs are operating, and the Bantayog Memorial Center enjoys a good name.

In the next 25 years, however, Bantayog can no longer depend on the goodwill of a few persons, nor should it. It does not have to. 

The values and principles that Bantayog memorializes in the lives of our heroes and martyrs are shared by those who participated in the struggle, their families and friends, their communities. Twenty-five years after the dictatorship was finally ousted, many of these survivors wish to acknowledge their role and to join Bantayog in taking care of their legacy.

On its 25th anniversary, therefore, Bantayog launches a campaign to raise an endowment fund of P25 million, the proceeds of which will then be used to continue and expand existing and future programs. These include sustaining and expanding the Bantayog Museum, the Bantayog Library, Research and Documentation, and launching a Public Information program.

Why are these programs so important?

For one, we realize how so much of the martial law experience is unrecorded, uncollated, little known except to the direct participants, and how its material existence is fast disappearing.  How can we credibly tell the “never again” experience of communities and families in the Cordillera, Davao, Samar, Sulu, Quezon?  Even the notorious record of the dictatorship's excesses and crimes is not readily available to researchers who come to our library, because materials are lacking or scattered.

Funds are needed to harness more researchers, send them on data-gathering missions, collect artifacts, take pictures, record and transcribe interviews.

Funds are needed to recruit and train museum guides, upgrade the permanent displays and mount topical exhibits, take care of priceless collections.

Funds are needed  by the library to acquire all the books, printed and digital materials about martial law  that are now starting to come out, not to mention those that have already been published earlier.

Funds are needed to produce educational and informational materials about Bantayog, including flyers, videos and films, and to promote the Bantayog Memorial Center as a living venue for patriotic, meaningful events.

When we think about it, P25 million is such a small sum compared to the profligate amounts of people's money that was thrown away by the dictatorship.  Yet it can go a very long way.