50 Fun Facts About EDSA Revolution

In which year did the EDSA Revolution take place?

The main demonstrations ran from February 22 to 25 and ended a 20-year Marcos rule.

What does the acronym EDSA stand for?

The avenue is named after the academic Epifanio de los Santos and runs 23.8 km around Metro Manila.

Which colour gave the uprising its other nickname, the '___ Revolution'?

The ribbons referenced a Tony Orlando and Dawn hit and became the symbol of protest after Ninoy Aquino's death.

Which Archbishop of Manila led the religious groups at EDSA?

Cardinal Ricardo Vidal, Archbishop of Cebu, also backed the protests as head of the bishops' conference.

Cardinal Sin made his appeal to the people over which Catholic broadcaster?

Its 2003 inscription in the UNESCO Memory of the World register honours the broadcasts of those days.

Where did the Marcos family go into exile?

They reached Hickam Air Force Base on February 26 after stops at Clark and Andersen air bases.

Who was inaugurated as the eleventh President of the Philippines in 1986?

She was the first female president in Philippine history and is often called the 'Mother of Democracy'.

In which year was Ninoy Aquino assassinated at Manila International Airport?

He was shot as he disembarked on August 21; the airport was later renamed in his honour.

Under what alias was Ninoy Aquino's second passport issued?

The name combined 'martial' with Fort Bonifacio, where he had been imprisoned.

Which proclamation number placed the Philippines under martial law in 1972?

Marcos cited the unrest after the 1969 balance of payments crisis as justification.

Which party did Marcos run under in the 1986 snap election?

KBL, the 'New Society Movement', was the regime's ruling party.

Who was Marcos's vice-presidential running mate in the snap election?

Tolentino was proclaimed vice-president alongside Marcos on February 15 amid the fraud controversy.

Who ran as Cory Aquino's vice-presidential running mate?

'Doy' Laurel, son of former president Jose P. Laurel, had wanted the top spot himself before UNIDO backed Aquino.

Which accredited poll watcher's count had Aquino beating Marcos?

With 70% of precincts in, it had Aquino ahead 7,835,070 to 7,053,068.

What was the name of Aquino's February 16 rally at Luneta Park?

About two million people attended, and Aquino announced a nonviolent civil disobedience campaign there.

What does RAM, the group of officers behind the aborted coup, stand for?

RAM formed in 1982 among officers angered by patronage politics and corruption in the AFP.

Which colonel founded RAM and planned the assault on Malacañang?

Honasan later led several coup attempts against the Aquino government.

Which Defense Minister withdrew support from Marcos on February 22?

He and the RAM plotters acted after Marcos ordered their arrest and paraded two captured majors before the press.

Which AFP Vice Chief of Staff resigned to join the rebels at the camps?

He was also chief of the Philippine Constabulary and went on to become president in 1992.

Where did Enrile and Ramos hold their 6:30 p.m. press conference on February 22?

They spoke from the Ministry of National Defense building at the AFP headquarters.

Enrile crossed EDSA on February 23 to join Ramos where?

The two camps face each other across EDSA; the crowd cheered him as he crossed.

Marcos urged Enrile and Ramos to 'stop this ___' in his news conference. What word?

He tried phoning Enrile, who refused to take the call, then went on TV vowing to crush anyone in his way.

Butz Aquino told supporters to gather at which Cubao department store?

From there the ATOM, BANDILA and FSDM marchers headed south along Aurora Boulevard to Camp Aguinaldo.

'Radyo Bandido' broadcast from the transmitter of which station?

Father James Reuter's team adopted the 'Bandit Radio' callsign to hide their location from soldiers.

Which broadcaster kept Radyo Bandido on air through the nights of the revolution?

A former actress, she worked alongside her husband Angelo Castro Jr. from a booth in Santa Mesa.

The 'LABAN' hand sign flashed by the crowds forms which letter?

Made with thumb and index finger, it means 'fight' and abbreviates Lakas ng Bayan, Ninoy Aquino's party.

Which patriotic kundiman became the opposition's protest anthem and was sung at EDSA?

Its Spanish lyrics date to the Philippine–American War; the song was deemed seditious under martial law.

Which general's Marine column was stopped by crowds on Ortigas Avenue on February 23?

Nuns knelt with rosaries in front of the tanks, and the troops withdrew without a shot fired.

Which colonel led the 15th Strike Wing helicopters that defected and landed at the camp?

The 'Sotelo landing' is seen as the point where the military balance turned against Marcos.

Which Marine colonel stalled and refused four orders to shell the rebel camp?

He told his superior his men were 'still looking for maps' and 'still positioning the cannons'.

Which general issued the 'kill order' against the rebel camp around 9 a.m. on February 24?

He told the Marine colonel that 'The President is on the other line waiting for compliance!'

On which government TV channel did Marcos declare he would not step down on Feb 24?

He broadcast from the foreclosed ABS-CBN compound in Broadcast Plaza, which rebels seized about an hour later.

Who announced 'Channel 4 is on the air again to serve the people' after rebels took the station?

The marathon broadcast was seen as the return of ABS-CBN, 14 years after Marcos sequestered it.

Which colonel's rebel contingent captured the government TV station on February 24?

The station went off the air at about 9:50 a.m. in the middle of Marcos's broadcast.

Where was Cory Aquino sworn in as president on February 25?

The Greenhills club sits about a kilometre from Camp Crame; Marcos held his own rival ceremony an hour later.

Which justice administered Cory Aquino's oath of office?

Justice Vicente Abad Santos swore in Laurel as vice-president at the same ceremony.

Who held the Bible at Cory's oath-taking on February 25?

Aurora was Ninoy's mother, making the moment a family vindication as well as a political one.

Which 1938 kundiman did Imelda Marcos sing from the palace balcony as a farewell?

It was the couple's theme song, and it was the last time Marcos was seen in the Philippines.

Which US senator told Marcos by phone to 'cut and cut cleanly'?

Marcos called at 5 a.m. seeking White House advice and fell silent in disappointment at the answer.

The US helicopter first flew the Marcos family from Malacañang to where?

From there, US Air Force planes took them to Guam and on to Hickam in Hawaii.

People from which province blocked the Bamban Bridge to stop loyalist reinforcements?

Some 20,000 people held the bridge against the Army's 5th Infantry Division heading for Manila.

After EDSA, Cory Aquino was named Woman of the Year by which magazine?

She had no prior political experience when she took office.

Who sculpted the 30-figure People Power Monument at EDSA and White Plains Avenue?

The 18-metre monument from 1993 tops out with a female figure whose wrists bear unchained shackles.

Who composed 'Magkaisa', recorded by Virna Lisa days after the revolution?

He wrote it in three days; Vic Sotto sang backup on the recording of March 1, 1986.

Which Apo Hiking Society member wrote 'Handog ng Pilipino sa Mundo'?

The all-star video featured martial law heroes such as Jose W. Diokno and Lorenzo Tañada.

The 2001 'EDSA Revolution' forced the resignation of which president?

Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was sworn in at noon on January 20, 2001.

The radio broadcasts of the revolution joined which UNESCO register in 2003?

Radio kept millions informed of troop movements and supply requests during the four days.

Marcos asked to visit which home province before exile, a request Aquino vetoed?

President Reagan privately derided Aquino for denying Marcos a last look at his province.

Whom did Marcos defeat to win the presidency in 1965?

He won 52 to 43 percent, then beat Sergio Osmeña Jr. in 1969 amid vote-buying charges.

Which CBS anchor said Filipinos were 'teaching the world' about democracy?

His line: 'We Americans like to think we taught the Filipinos democracy. Well, tonight they are teaching the world.'