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| New Society (Philippines) | |
|---|---|
| Name | New Society |
| Native name | Bagong Lipunan |
| Founder | Ferdinand Marcos |
| Founded | 1972 |
| Dissolved | 1986 |
| Country | Philippines |
New Society (Philippines) The New Society was the official ideological campaign and program instituted after the 1972 declaration of martial law by Ferdinand Marcos, aiming to restructure Philippine political, economic, and cultural life. Launched amid crises involving the Communist Party of the Philippines, Moro conflict, and global Cold War tensions, the initiative intersected with administrations, institutions, and movements across Southeast Asia, the United States, and international organizations. It framed policies through proclamations, decrees, and institutional reforms that involved the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Constabulary, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, and various civic organizations.
The New Society emerged after President Ferdinand Marcos cited threats from the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People's Army, and the Moro National Liberation Front to justify Proclamation No. 1081, declaring martial law in 1972 and invoking the 1935 Constitution and later the 1973 Constitution. Key actors included Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile, Chief of Staff Fabian Ver, and members of the Interim Batasang Pambansa and Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, while domestic events such as the Plaza Miranda bombing, the Benigno Aquino Jr. arrest, and the Jabidah Massacre shaped elite and popular responses. Internationally, the plan intersected with United States policy under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, ASEAN diplomacy involving Suharto and Lee Kuan Yew, and Cold War dynamics with the Soviet Union and China.
Framed as a syncretic blend of authoritarian developmentalism, nationalist rhetoric, and anti-communist doctrine, the New Society invoked concepts associated with Filipino nationalism championed by Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio, and Emilio Aguinaldo while also drawing on technocratic models promoted by Milton Friedman, Daniel Bell, and Max Weber through advisers like Cesar Virata and Roberto Romulo. It emphasized order, discipline, moral regeneration, and social engineering as articulated in speeches and decrees from Malacañang Palace and implemented via the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, the Social Welfare Administration, and the Philippine Information Agency. The ideological program positioned itself against groups like the Communist Party of the Philippines, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, and the Student Christian Movement while aligning rhetorically with conservative institutions such as the Roman Catholic Church and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Policy measures under the New Society spanned economic, legal, and social initiatives, including land reform under the Department of Agrarian Reform, industrial promotion via the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), and infrastructural projects like the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant and the San Juanico Bridge commissioned by the National Power Corporation and the Philippine National Construction Corporation. Legal instruments included Presidential Decrees, the Martial Law-era Code, and amendments debated in the Constitutional Convention involving delegates like Hilario Davide Jr. and Jose Laurel Jr. Social programs targeted youth and civic groups through the Kabataang Barangay, the Cultural Center of the Philippines, and literacy campaigns influenced by UNESCO, while foreign investment and debt policies engaged institutions such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Asian Development Bank.
Implementation relied on centralized executive control, with agencies like the Office of the President, the National Security Council, and the Commission on Elections operating under emergency powers; military leaders including Fidel Ramos and Romeo Espino played administrative roles alongside technocrats like Cesar Virata and Enrique Zobel. The Kilusang Bagong Lipunan functioned as a political vehicle paralleled by the Interim Batasang Pambansa and later the Regular Batasang Pambansa, interacting with opposition figures such as Benigno Aquino Jr., Jovito Salonga, and Miriam Defensor Santiago. Regional governance involved prefectures and local executives coordinated with the Commission on Audit and the Central Bank of the Philippines, producing tensions with provincial elites, human rights advocates from Amnesty International, and media outlets like the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Resistance encompassed a spectrum from parliamentary opposition led by the Liberal Party and Lakas ng Bayan to armed insurgencies by the New People's Army and Moro separatist groups, while civil society mobilization involved organizations such as the National Democratic Front, the Free Legal Assistance Group, and the Coalition for Restoration of Democracy. Human rights reporting from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and local watchdogs documented enforced disappearances, detention without trial, torture, and extrajudicial killings attributed to units of the Philippine Constabulary, the Integrated National Police, and paramilitary groups. Key incidents shaping international scrutiny included the assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr., the Escape of Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr., and the publicity campaigns by exiles such as Jose Maria Sison.
The New Society sought cultural transformation through the Cultural Center of the Philippines, censorship policies affecting ABS-CBN and Radio Television Malacañang, and promotion of nationalist curricula in the Department of Education, with echoes in music, film, and literature involving personalities like Lino Brocka, Nick Joaquin, and F. Sionil Jose. Urban planning projects impacted communities in Quezon City, Makati, and the Ilocos region, intersecting with landholders, peasant movements, and labor unions such as the Kilusang Mayo Uno and the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines. Religious institutions including the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, Protestant denominations, and Islamic leaders influenced moral discourse, while international cultural exchanges engaged institutions like the British Council and the United States Information Agency.
Scholars and commentators including Michael H. Hunt, Alfred McCoy, Benedict Anderson, and Sheila S. Coronel have debated the New Society's legacy in terms of developmental outcomes, democratic erosion, and state violence, contrasting infrastructural achievements with allegations of kleptocracy, as epitomized by the Marcos family's businesses and cronies such as Imelda Marcos and Danding Cojuangco. Post-1986 administrations under Corazon Aquino, Fidel Ramos, Joseph Estrada, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Benigno Aquino III, and Rodrigo Duterte grappled with transitional justice measures, reparations, and the recovery of ill-gotten wealth pursued by the Presidential Commission on Good Government and the Sandiganbayan. The period remains central to Philippine historiography, comparative studies of authoritarianism, and ongoing debates involving the Supreme Court, academic institutions like the University of the Philippines, and memory politics involving martial law veterans and victims' families.
Category:Political history of the Philippines Category:Martial law in the Philippines