Libraries and their role in transitional justice in the Philippines

Abstract

The stories of the University Library of the University of the Philippines Diliman, Task Force Detainees of the Philippines, and Bantayog ng mga Bayani (Monument to the Heroes), the libraries that survived during and after the martial law years in the Philippines under the late strongman President Ferdinand Marcos, are told as part of the country’s direction towards transitional justice. The authors argue that the Philippines is experiencing an ‘extended’ transition and that libraries play an important role as memory activists. The narratives and experiences of the librarians and staff show various memory work, reconciliation activities, redress practices, and collaborations.

Understanding the Unforeseen Consequences of an Incomplete Transitional Justice Ecology in the Philippines

“…Recently, a range of memorialisation initiatives started to complement the work of Bantayog, including the Martial Law Files, the Martial Law Online Museum, and the Marital Law Chronicles Project, the online Museum of Courage and Resistance, and the Bantayog Online Museum, along with a multitude of smaller grassroots initiatives, including initiatives rooted in artistic practice. Also, among librarians a movement emerged that approached libraries as memory spaces and repositories of evidence during and after the Martial Law years, collecting materials for informational, historical, and legal inquiries and for justice efforts more generally (Buenrostro and Cabbab, 2019: 8). For example, the University Library of Diliman was initially a safe haven for underground, anti-government publications and other unpublished materials, which after being hidden from the public for 30 years, now constitute the Philippine Radical Papers (Buenrostro and Cabbab, 2019: 9).…”

“…Also, among librarians a movement emerged that approached libraries as memory spaces and repositories of evidence during and after the Martial Law years, collecting materials for informational, historical, and legal inquiries and for justice efforts more generally (Buenrostro and Cabbab, 2019: 8). For example, the University Library of Diliman was initially a safe haven for underground, anti-government publications and other unpublished materials, which after being hidden from the public for 30 years, now constitute the Philippine Radical Papers (Buenrostro and Cabbab, 2019: 9). Since the coming to power of Duterte, many of these initiatives experience increasing pressure and threats as well as attempts to co-opt historical narratives (Buenrostro and Cabbab, 2019).…”

The library as soft-power actor: A review

“…Often, this literature discusses influence, cultural diffusion and national libraries as a means of legitimising national identity and the nation state (Byrne, 2007: 17–19; Laugesen, 2019; Lor, 2019: 12–13). Broadly, the current international literature has observed the strategic roles of libraries in national security (Buenrostro and Cabbab, 2019; Ignatow, 2011; Itsekor et al, 2017), national development (Coghlan and Robertson, 2014), diplomacy (Gutierrez, 2015), and international cooperation in the Library and Information Science profession (Witt, 2014a, 2014b). This has included recent recognition of the role that libraries play in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (Kosciejew, 2020; Missingham, 2021; Thorpe and Gunton, 2019).…”

Academic libraries’ main strategies and services during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…According to the literature, the role of memory and activist institutions in pursuing social justice and providing mechanisms to overcome existing difficulties has been inevitable. For instance, Buenrostro and Cabbab’s (2019) study addresses the role of Libraries in justice. Moreover, Sabolovic-Krajinaitle (2019) discusses the role of public libraries in times of crisis.…”