Early Life and Education
María Corazón Sumúlong Cojuangco was born to Don Jose Cojuangco of Tarlac, a wealthy Chinese Filipino and Doña Demetria Sumúlong of Antipolo, Rizal, a natural Filipina who belongs to a politically influential clan. She was the sixth of eight children in what was considered to be second of the richest Chinese-Mestizo families in the Philippines,[5][6] in Tarlac.[7] Her siblings are: Ceferino, Pedro, Josephine Reyes, Tere Lopa, Carmen, Jose "Peping" Cojuangco, Jr. and Maria Paz Teopaco.
Her maternal grandfather was the late Senator Juan Marquez Sumulong whose wife was Doña Ma. Salome Sumulong both from Antipolo, Rizal, Philippines. Senator Sumulong's parents were Don Policarpio Sumulong and Doña Arcadia Marquez, again, both natives of Antipolo.
Her paternal grandfather was Don Melecio Estrella Cojuangco whose wife was Doña Tecla Valenzuela Chichioco of Malolos, Bulacan, Philippines. Doña Tecla was a respected businesswoman of Malolos, Paombong and Hagonoy, Bulacan, Philippines. She was a scion from the Spanish Valenzuela clan of Malolos, Chinese Chichioco clan of Malolos, the Japanese descendant hacienderos, the Jumaquio clan of Kapitangan, Paombong, Bulacan, Philippines and the great clan of Magat Salamat of Hagonoy, Bulacan. Magat Salamat was one of the sons of the great Rajah Lakandula. Two of Doña Tecla's ancestors were the hacienderos Don Tiburcio Jumaquio and Doña Urzula Cunanan Gutierrez. One of her blood cousins was Don Catalino Gutierrez Jumaquio, the cabeza baranggay of Calizon, Paombong, Bulacan in late 1800's and one of the sons of Don Tiburcio and Doña Urzula. True to her bloodline of Philippine heroes, Doña Tecla never gave up life in spite of trials of her family and sons. She was a woman of valor and this was obviously passed on to her descendant Ma. Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino.
The young Cory went to
St. Scholastica's College in
Manila where she finished grade school as class
valedictorian in 1943. In 1946, she enrolled for a year in high school at the Assumption Convent in Manila but eventually went to the
United States and finished high school at the Ravenhill Academy in Philadelphia.
[5] She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in
French, minor in
Mathematics from the College of Mount Saint Vincent in
New York. During her stay in the United States, she worked as a volunteer in the 1948 United States presidential campaign of Republican
ThomasAfter her graduation from college in the United States, the young Cory returned to the Philippines to study law at the Far Eastern University for one year. She interrupted her law studies when she tied the knot with the then rising political star Benigno Aquino, Jr., more popularly known as Ninoy, the son of the late Speaker Benigno Q. Aquino, Sr.. The couple produced five offsprings, four girls and one boy, namely: Maria Elena (Ballsy), Aurora Corazon(Pinky), Benigno Simeon III (NoyNoy), Victoria Eliza (Viel) and Kristina Bernadette (Kris).
Aquino had initial difficulty adjusting to provincial life when she and Ninoy moved to Concepcion, Tarlac in 1955, after the latter was elected the town's mayor at the age of 22. The American-educated Aquino found herself bored in Concepcion, and welcomed the opportunity to have dinner with her husband inside the American military facility at nearby Clark Field.[8]
A member of the Liberal Party, Aquino's husband Ninoy rose to become the youngest governor in the country and eventually became the youngest senator ever elected in the Senate of the Philippines in 1967. During her husband's political career, Aquino remained a housewife who helped raise their children and played hostess to her spouse's political allies who would frequent their Quezon City home.[6] She would decline to join her husband on stage during campaign rallies, preferring instead to stand at the back of the audience and listen to him.[8] Nonetheless, she was consulted upon on political matters by her husband, who valued her judgments enormously.[6]
An eloquent speaker and brilliant politician, Ninoy Aquino soon emerged as a leading critic of the government of President Ferdinand Marcos. He was then touted as a strong candidate for president to succeed Marcos in the 1973 elections. However, Marcos, being barred by the Constitution to seek a third term, declared martial law on September 21, 1972, and later abolished the existing 1935 Constitution, thereby allowing him to remain in office. As a consequence, Aquino's husband was among those to be first arrested at the onset of martial law, later being sentenced to death. During his incarceration, Ninoy sought strength from prayer, attending daily mass and saying three rosaries a day and drew inspiration from his wife, Cory.[8] As a measure of sacrifice and solidarity with her husband and all other political prisoners, she enjoined her children from attending parties and she also stopped going to the beauty salon or buying new clothes until a priest advised her and her children to instead live as normal lives as possible.[8]
In 1978, despite her initial opposition, Ninoy decided to run in the 1978 Batasang Pambansa elections. A reluctant speaker, Cory campaigned in behalf of her husband and for the first time in her life, delivered a political speech,[4][8], though later on she refrained from giving campaign speeches when it became clearer that her six-year old daughter Kris was more willing than her to speak on stage to the public.[8]
In 1980, upon the intervention of US President Jimmy Carter,[4] Marcos allowed Senator Aquino and his family to leave for exile in the United States, where he sought medical treatment. The family settled in Boston, and Aquino would later call the next three years as the happiest days of her marriage and family life. On August 21, 1983, however, Ninoy ended his stay in the United States and returned without his family to the Philippines, only to be assassinated on a staircase leading to the tarmac of the Manila International Airport, which was later renamed in his honor. Corazon Aquino returned to the Philippines a few days later and led her husband's funeral procession, in which more than two million people joined the procession, the biggest ever in Philippine and world history.
1986 Presidential campaign
Following her husband's assassination in 1983, Aquino became active and visible in various demonstrations and protests held against the Marcos regime. She began to assume the mantle of leadership left by her husband Ninoy and started to become the symbolic figurehead of the anti-Marcos political opposition. In the last week of November 1985, Marcos surprised the nation by announcing on American television that he will hold a snap presidential election in February 1986, in order to dispel and remove doubts against his regime's legitimacy and authority.
Ninoy's childhood best friend and former senator Salvador "Doy" Laurel was the initial favorite to become the opposition's standard-bearer in the upcoming election against Marcos. However, many doubted Laurel's chances of winning, the most prominent among them was the late media mogul Don Joaquin "Chino" Roces. Roces personally believed that it was only Ninoy's widow, Cory, who could unite the people and defeat Marcos. As a result, he launched the Cory Aquino for President Movement and initiated a drive to gather one million signatures in order to urge Cory to challenge the dictator.
Reluctant at first, Aquino was eventually prevailed upon to heed the people's clamor, after one million signatures urging her to run for president were presented to her. Despite this, the erstwhile favorite opposite candidate, Laurel, did not immediately gave way to her best friend's widow. Laurel was only convinced to slide down as Cory's running-mate upon the urging of the influential Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin. As a compromise, Aquino agreed to run under Laurel's machinery, the United Nationalist Democratic Organizations (UNIDO), then the country's largest opposition party. With that, the Aquino-Laurel tandem was formally launched to challenge Marcos and finally put an end to his twenty-year martial rule.
In the subsequent political developments and events, Marcos charged that Aquino was being supported by communists and agreed to share power with them once elected into power. A political novice, Aquino categorically denied Marcos' charge and even stated that she would not appoint a single communist to her cabinet.[10] Running on the offensive, the ailing Marcos also accused Aquino of playing "political football" with the United States with respect to the continued United States military presence in the Philippines at Clark Air Base and Subic Naval Base. Further, the male strongman derided Aquino's womanhood, by saying that she was "just a woman" whose place was in the bedroom. In response to her opponent's sexist remark, Cory simply remarked that "may the better woman win in this election." Marcos also attacked Aquino's inexperience and warned the country that it would be a disaster if a woman like her with no previous political experience would be elected president; to which Aquino cleverly responded and sarcastically admitted that she had "no experience in cheating, lying to the public, stealing government money, and killing political opponents."
The snap election called by Marcos which was held on February 7, 1986 was marred by massive electoral fraud, violence, intimidation, coercion and disenfranchisement of voters. Election Day proved to be bloody as one of Aquino's staunchest allies Antique Governor Evelio Javier was brutally murdered, allegedly by one of Marcos' supporters in his province. Further, during the counting and tallying of votes conducted by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), 30 poll computer technicians walked out to dispute and contest the alleged election-rigging done in favor of Marcos. Despite this, the Batasang Pamabansa, which was dominated by allies of the ruling party, declared President Marcos as the winner in the recently concluded snap presidential election on February 15, 1986. In protest to the declaration of the Philippine parliament, Aquino called for a rally dubbed "Tagumpay ng Bayan" (People's Victory Rally) the following day, during which she claimed that she was the real winner in the snap election and urged Filipinos to boycott the products and services by companies controlled or owned by Marcos cronies. The rally held at the historic Rizal Park in Luneta, Manila drew a mammoth-sized crowd, which sent a strong signal that Filipinos were already growing tired of Marcos' two decade-rule. Further,the dubious election results drew sharp reactions from both local quarters and foreign countries. The Philippine's Catholic bishop issued a statement strongly criticizing the conduct of the election which was characterized by violence and fraud. The United States Senate, on the other hand, condemned the election. Furthermore, Aquino rejected a power-sharing agreement proposed by the American diplomat Philip Habib, who had been sent as an emissary by U.S. President Ronald Reagan to help defuse the tension.
Installation as President
After weeks of tension following the disputed outcome of the snap election, disgruntled and reformist military officers, led by then Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile and General Fidel V. Ramos, surprised the entire nation and the whole world when they announced their defection from President Marcos and their strong belief that Aquino was the real winner in the presidential election on February 22, 1986. Upon the urging and encouragement of the activist Archbishop of Manila Jaime Cardinal Sin, millions of Filipinos trooped to Camp Aguinaldo along Epifanio De los Santos Avenue (EDSA), where Enrile and Ramos have been holding operations, to give their moral support and prayers for the reformist soldiers. At that time, Aquino was meditating in a Carmelite convent in Cebu. Upon learning of the defection, Aquino called on Filipinos to rally behind Minister Enrile and General Ramos. Later on, Aquino flew back to Manila in order to prepare to assume the presidency upon the ouster of Marcos. Finally, to the amazement and admiration of the entire world, after twenty years of martial rule, Ferdinand Marcos was driven out from power and Corazon Aquino was formally and peacefully sworn in as the new president of a freed and liberated Philippines on February 25, 1986, a historic event which is now known and remembered as the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution.
Presidency
The triumph of the peaceful People Power Revolution and the ascension of Corazon Aquino into power signaled the end of authoritarian rule in the Philippines and the dawning of a new era for Filipinos. The relatively-peaceful manner by which Aquino came into power drew international acclaim and admiration not only for her but for the Filipino people, as well.
During the first months of Aquino's presidency, the country experienced radical changes and sweeping democratic reforms. One of Aquino's first and boldest moves was the creation of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), which was tasked to go after the Marcos ill-gotten wealth. Aquino, being a revolutionary president by virtue of people power, abolished the 1973 "Marcos Constitution" and dissolved the Marcos allies-dominated Batasang Pambansa, despite the advice of her vice-president and only prime minister Salvador Laurel. She also immediately created a Constitutional Commission, which she directed for the drafting of a new constitution for the nation.
On the over-all, the Aquino administration made important gains in the aspects of bringing back democracy, restoring investor confidence in the economy and enacting legal and constitutional reforms. Despite these achievements, her presidency faced several threats from both right-wing military elements and extreme left-wing communist rebels. Further, her administration dealt with numerous problems such as major natural disasters which struck the country and severe power shortages which took a toll on doing business in the Philippines. It was also during her tenure that the United States finally ended its military bases and presence in the country.
Constitutional and political reforms
Immediately after assuming the presidency, President Aquino issued Proclamation No. 3, which established a revolutionary government. She abolished the 1973 Constitution that was in force during martial law, and instead promulgated the provisional 1986 Freedom Constitution, pending the ratification of a new Constitution by the people. This allowed Aquino to exercise both executive and legislative powers until the ratification of the new Philippine Constitution and the establishment of a new Congress in 1987. As such, Aquino promulgated two landmark legal codes, namely, the Family Code of 1987, which reformed the civil law on family relations, and the Administrative Code of 1987, which reorganized the structure of the executive branch of government. Another landmark law that was enacted during her tenure was the 1991 Local Government Code, which devolved national government powers to local government units (LGUs). The new Code also enhanced the power of LGUs to enact local taxation measures and assured them of a share in the national revenue.
Likewise, Aquino closed down the Marcos-dominated Batasang Pambansa to prevent the new Marcos loyalist opposition from undermining her democratic reforms and reorganized the membership of the Supreme Court to restore its independence. In May 1986, the reorganized Supreme Court declared the Aquino government as “not merely a de facto government but in fact and law a de jure government”, whose legitimacy had been affirmed by the community of nations. This Supreme Court decision significantly affirmed the status of Aquino as the new, legitimate and rightful leader of the Philippines.
To fast-track the restoration of a full constitutional government and the writing of a new charter, President Aquino appointed 48 members of the 1986 Constitutional Commission (Con-Com), led by retired activist Supreme Court Associate Justice Cecilia Muñoz-Palma. The Con-Com completed its final draft in October 1986 On February 2, 1987, the new Constitution of the Philippines, which put strong emphasis on civil liberties, human rights and social justice, was overwhelmingly approved by the Filipino people. The ratification of the new Constitution was followed by the election of senators and congress that same year and the holding of local elections in 1988.
Economic Management
When Aquino became president, she inherited an economy that was bankrupt and debt-ridden as a result of twenty years of misrule and mismanagement under the Marcos regime. As president, Aquino focused her attention and energy to revitalize and rejuvenate the sagging economy.
One of her boldest moves was to dismantle the various monopolies that were perpetrated by Marcos during his stay in power. She also moved quickly to tackle the issue of the US$26 billion foreign debt incurred by her predecessor. Instead of repudiating it, Aquino chose to honor all the debts that were incurred previously under different administrations. Her decision proved to be unpopular but Aquino defended it, saying that it was the most practical move and choice to make as it was crucial for the country at that time to regain the confidence of investors and the international community in the Philippine economy. Since 1986, a portion of the national budget has been used to pay off the country's outstanding debts in order to regain good international credit ratings and attract the attention of future markets.
Further, the Aquino administration also sought to bring back fiscal discipline in order as it aimed to trim down the government's budget deficit that ballooned during Marcos' term through privatization of bad government assets and deregulation of many vital industries. It was also during Aquino's time that vital economic laws such as the Built-Operate-Transfer Law, Foreign Investments Act and the Consumer Protection and Welfare Act were enacted.
Furthermore, the economy posted a positive growth of 3.4% during her first year in office. On the overall, the economy under Aquino had an average growth of 3.8% from 1986 to 1992.
Upon her ascension into power, President Aquino envisioned agrarian and land reform as the centerpiece of her administration's social legislative agenda. However, her family background and social class as a privileged and landed daughter of a wealthy and landed clan became a lightning rod of criticisms against her land reform agenda. In February 22, 1987, three weeks after the resounding ratification of the 1987 Constitution, agrarian workers and farmers marched to the historic Mendiola Street near Malacanang Palace to demand genuine land reform from Aquino's administration. However, the supposedly peaceful farmers' march turned bloody and violent when Marine forces fired at farmers who tried to go beyond the designated demarcation line set by the police. As a result, 12 farmers were killed and 19 were injured in this incident now known as the Mendiola Massacre. This tragic incident led some prominent members of the Aquino Cabinet like the nationalist and progressive senator Jose W. Diokno to quit from their government posts. Though Aquino did not have any personal and official involvement with the drastic actions taken by some police elements, her administration has been faulted since then for failing to solve land disputes in the country.
In response to calls for agrarian reform, President Aquino issued Presidential Proclamation 131 and Executive Order 229 on July 22, 1987, which outlined the her land reform program, which included sugar lands. In 1988, with the backing of Aquino, the new Congress of the Philippines passed Republic Act No. 6657, more popularly known as the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law." The law paved the way for the redistribution of agricultural lands to tenant-farmers from landowners, who were paid in exchange by the government through just compensation but were also allowed to retain not more than five hectares of land. However, corporate landowners were also allowed under the law to “voluntarily divest a proportion of their capital stock, equity or participation in favor of their workers or other qualified beneficiaries”, in lieu of turning over their land to the government for redistribution. Despite the flaws in the law, the Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality in 1989, declaring that the implementation of the comprehensive agrarian reform program (CARP), provided by the said law) was “a revolutionary kind of expropriation.”
Despite the implementation of CARP, Aquino was not spared from the controversies that eventually centered on Hacienda Luisita, a 6,453-hectare estate located in the Province of Tarlac, which she inherited from her family. She was scored for allowing Hacienda Luisita, which was now owned by the Tarlac Development Corporation, to opt for stock distribution, instead of land redistribution. As such, ownership of agricultural portions of the hacienda were transferred to the corporation, which in turn, gave its shares of stocks to farmers.
The arrangement remained in force until 2006, when the Department of Agrarian Reform revoked the stock distribution scheme adopted in Hacienda Luisita, and ordered instead the redistribution of a large portion of the property to the tenant-farmers. The Department stepped into the controversy when in 2004, violence erupted over the retrenchment of workers in the Hacienda, eventually leaving seven people dead.
Influence in 1992 presidential campaign
As the end of her presidency drew near, close advisers and friends told Aquino that since she was not inaugurated under the 1987 Constitution, she was still eligible to seek the presidency again in the upcoming 1992 elections, the first presidential elections under normal and peaceful circumstances since 1965. President Aquino strongly declined the requests for her to seek reelection and wanted to set an example to both citizens and politicians that the presidency is not a lifetime position.
Initially, she named Ramon V. Mitra, a friend of her husband Ninoy and then Speaker of the Philippine House of Representatives, as her candidate for the presidential race in 1992. However, she later on backtracked and instead threw her support behind the candidacy of her defense secretary and EDSA Revolution hero, General Fidel V. Ramos, who constantly stood by and defended her government from the various coup attempts and rebellions that were launched against her. Her sudden change of mind and withdrawal of support from Mitra drew criticisms not only from her supporters in the liberal and social democratic sectors but from the Roman Catholic Church, as well, which questioned her anointing of Ramos since the latter was a Protestant. Nevertheless, Aquino's candidate eventually won the 1992 elections, albeit by a margin of 23.58 percent of the total votes only, and was sworn in as the 12th President of the Philippines on June 30, 1992.
Post-presidency and continued political activism
On June 30, 1992, President Aquino formally and peacefully handed over power to her anointed candidate and democratically-elected General Fidel V. Ramos, after six years of hard-fought democratic transition and restoration. On her way to the inauguration of President-elect Ramos, Aquino chose to ride on a simple white Toyota Crown she had purchased, rather than the lavish government-issued Mercedes Benz, to make the point that she was now again an ordinary citizen.
Though Aquino retired to private life, following the end of her term, she remained active in the Philippine political scene, constantly voicing opposition and dissent to government actions and policies, which she deemed as threats to the liberal traditions and democratic foundations of the country.
In 1997, Aquino, together with the influential Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, led a huge rally which succeeded in thwarting then President Fidel Ramos' attempt to extend his term by amending the 1987 Constitution's restriction on presidential term limits. In 1998, Aquino endorsed the candidacy of former police general and Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim for president. Lim, however, lost to then Vice-President Joseph Estrada, who won by a landslide.The following year, Aquino again with Cardinal Sin successfully opposed President Estrada's plan of amending the Constitution, which he said was intended to lift provisions that 'restrict' economic activities and investments; he denied that it was another ploy for him to extend his stay in office. In 2000, Aquino joined the mounting calls for Estrada to resign from office, amid strong allegations of bribery chargers and gambling kickbacks and series of corruption scandals, which eventually led to his impeachment in December of that year. In January 2001, during the EDSA Revolution of 2001 which ousted Estrada, Aquino enthusiastically supported the ascendancy of another woman, then Vice-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, into power.
In 2005, after series of revelations and exposes alleged and implicated President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in rigging the 2004 presidential elections, Aquino called on her erstwhile ally to make the 'supreme sacrifice' of resigning in order to prevent bloodshed, violence and further political deterioration. As such, Aquino was once again in the streets leading massive demonstrations demanding the resignation of President Arroyo.
In the 2007 senatorial elections, Aquino actively campaigned for the senatorial bid of her only son, Noynoy Aquino, who ran and won under the triumphant opposition banner.
In December 2008, Aquino publicly expressed some regrets for her participation in the EDSA Revolution of 2001, which installed Arroyo into power. She apologized in jest to former President Joseph Estrada for the role she played in his ouster in 2001.
In June 2009, two months before her death, Aquino issued a public statement which strongly denounced and condemned the Arroyo administration's plan of amending the 1987 Constitution, calling such attempt as a "shameless abuse of power."
Chartiable and Social Initiatives
Aside from being visible in various political gatherings and demonstrations, Aquino was heavily involved in several charitable activities and socio-economic initiatives. From 1992 until her death, Aquino was chairperson of the Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. Foundation which she set up in her husband's honor right after his brutal assassination in 1983. Further, she supported other causes such as the Gawad Kalinga social housing project for the poor and homeless. In 2007, Aquino helped establish the PinoyME Foundation, a non-profit organization which aims to provide microfinancing programs and projects for the poor. Aquino was also a lifelong member of the Council of Women World Leaders, an international organization of former and current female heads of state and government which seeks to mobilize high-profile women world leaders to make collective action on issues critical to the leadership, empowerment and development of women.
19.23 million
