[OPINION] The 54th anniversary of Martial Law and Edjop

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As we commemorate the 54th anniversary of Martial Law and recall the memory of those who took a stand and paid the ultimate price, it may be worth reflecting on the life of a young man who exemplified the meaning of a “person for others.”

As Ateneo student council president who later led the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP), Edgar “Edjop” Jopson had organized a rally calling for “a non-partisan constitutional convention” on the eve of the “First Quarter Storm” which resulted in a clash with truncheon-wielding troopers.  

A few days later, January 30, 1970, NUSP president Edjop was summoned by the president to Malacanang. While the meeting transpired without any resolution, I still recall the vigil outside its gates and the violence I witnessed ensuing far into the night in what has been described as the “Battle of Mendiola” presaging the so-called, “First Quarter Storm.”

I was then a seminarian at the Loyola House of Studies at the Ateneo campus in Loyola Heights. The first time I met him was at the January 26, 1970, rally at the opening of the 7th Congress when then-president Ferdinand E. Marcos delivered the State of the Nation address after Jesuit priest, Pacifico Ortiz, had invoked the image of a “social volcano” in his opening prayer.  

On February 17, 1970, a meeting of student leaders who refused to take the armed path in the struggle against the impending dictatorship met at the large third-floor classroom at the Loyola House of Studies. When a movement espousing non-violence and civil disobedience began to be considered, it was a “no-brainer” that the logical leader was the NUSP president Edjop.

However, Edjop was hesitant and stated that his “plate was full” and begged off.  Instead, he suggested a seminarian whom he believed had more time should step up; so, he turned to me on his right, and volunteered me which accounts for the reason why I chose “accidental activist” as the sub-title of my Memoir. This moment marked the founding of the militant non-violent movement, Lakasdiwa.

It also represented a conjuncture; giving people a choice between ending the cycle of violence prevailing at that time by means of armed struggle or by means of active non-violence (an option that probably seemed quixotic at that time). However, it may have instilled the seeds of people power that took place at a later time.

Based on Mahatma Gandhi’s “satyagraha” (or, the strength of spirit), non-violence has a long history. This militant form of struggle has been applied in similar situations as far apart as India and South Africa, and the pushback against racial segregation in America’s south. Other efforts in Eastern Europe and countries in the Middle East likewise made their influences felt.

The people power in the Philippines that took place in the mid-‘80s equally influenced other settings in different parts of the globe. It was this context that provided a backdrop to the actions taken by Edjop during this historic conjuncture.

Several incidents portrayed Edjop’s evolving character at this time. Close associates and friends of Edjop described him as a reticent and reluctant leader whose original instincts were moderately “down to earth,” to say the least. However, changing circumstances and his incisive analysis led him to a conclusion that he believed in — remaining true to his heroic calling.

As we commemorate another anniversary of Martial Law, it might be worth reflecting on the life of Edjop: someone who turned his back on a secure future to pursue a cause that he believed in till the ultimate consequences. Edjop belonged to a rare breed of people who learned slowly yet intently, and who acted decisively when the times called for bold action and the aspiration to be brave.  

As the country faces critical choices and disturbing trends, the example of Edjop’s life provides an inspiration to take up unprecedented challenges and the invitation to take the road less traveled. Though not all may feel up to the task, it is not the matter of numbers but the intensity of the response that may in the end spell the difference. As a sage once put it, “sometimes, the majority is one man or woman of courage.” 

For the young, and those whose hearts were young once, the challenge remains difficult and uncertain; likewise, the times seem uncertain, and the odds remain steep. But the question remains: to be brave, when the times demand.

A new generation of young people who will ponder on the life and choices of Edjop will most certainly confront the question of conscience and convenience, problems and principles, the present and a future of possibilities. – Rappler.com

Ed Garcia is the author of Reinventing Resistance! Memoir of an Accidental Activist, 2025, and Chronicle of a Life Untold.Testament to Hope, 2026, both published by San Anselmo Press.