2001 EDSA Revolution
Encyclopedia : 2 : 20 : 200 : 2001 EDSA Revolution
- This article refers to the EDSA Revolution of January 2001. For the events of April-May 2001, see EDSA III.
| Series of attempts at regime change in the Philippines (1970–2006) |
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Civil unrest (1970) People Power (1986) Claim of Tolentino (1986) Honasan's First (1987) Honasan's Second (1989) Fall of Estrada (2001) May 1 riots (2001) July 27 mutiny (2003) February 24 "coup" (2006) |
EDSA is an acronym derived from Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, the major highway that encircles Metro Manila. The revolt took place in the business district of Ortigas Center.
Timeline of Events
Background
On January 17, 2001, the impeachment trial of President Estrada moved to the investigation of an envelope containing crucial evidence that would allegedly prove acts of political corruption by Estrada. Senators allied with Estrada moved to block the evidence. The conflict between the senators, judges, and the prosecution became deeper, but Senator Francisco Tatad requested to the Impeachment court to make a vote for opening the second envelope. The vote resulted in 10 senators in favor of examining the evidence, and 11 senators in favor of suppressing it. The list of senators who voted for the second envelope are as follows:
| Voted to examine | Voted against examining |
|---|---|
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After the vote, Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. resigned as Senate President and walked out of the impeachment proceedings together with the 9 opposition Senators and 11 prosecutors in the Estrada impeachment trial. The 11 administration senators who voted YES to block the opening of the second envelope remained in Senate Session Hall. They were chanted with "Jose's Cohort" where their surnames were arranged.
Day 1:
All 11 prosecutors in the Estrada impeachment trial resigned, following an 11-10 vote by the Senate the previous day to block a key piece of evidence. Considered to be one of the most foolish acts in the Senate, Sen. Oreta, one of the two women-senator who voted for "NO" (no for opening of the envelop), danced joyfully before a nationwide television audience while the opposition walked out. This further fueled the growing anti-ERAP sentiments of the crowd gathered at EDSA.
A crowd begins to slowly gather at the EDSA Shrine.
Day 2:
The crowd continues to grow, bolstered by students from exclusive schools and militant left-wing organizations.Day 3:
The Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines withdraw their support for Estrada, joining the crowds at the EDSA Shrine.
At 5:00pm, Estrada appears on television for the first time since the beginning of the protests and maintains that he will not resign. He says he wants the impeachment trial to continue, stressing that only a guilty verdict will remove him from office.
At 6:15pm, Estrada again appears on television, calling for a snap presidential election to be held concurrently with congressional and local elections on May 14, 2001. He adds that he will not run in this election.
Day 4:
At noon, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo takes her oath of office in the presence of the crowd at EDSA, becoming the 14th president of the Philippines.
At 2:00 pm, Estrada releases a letter saying he had "strong and serious doubts about the legality and constitutionality of her proclamation as president", but saying he would give up his office to avoid being an obstacle to healing the nation.
Later, Estrada and his family leave Malacañang Palace, smiling and waving to reporters and shaking hands with the remaining members of his Cabinet and other palace employees. He was placed under house arrest and eventually confined to his rest home in Sampaloc, a small village in Tanay, Rizal.
Criticism
The only means of legitimizing the event was the last-minute Supreme Court ruling that "the welfare of the people is the supreme law." But by then, the Armed Forces of the Philippines days ago already withdrew support for the president, which some analysts call unconstitutional and most foreign political analysts would agree. William Overholt, a Hong Kong-based political economist said that "It is either being called mob rule or mob rule as a cover for a well-planned coup," "But either way, it's not democracy." It should also be noted that opinion was divided during EDSA II about whether Gloria Arroyo as the incumbent Vice-president should be president if Joseph Estrada was ousted; many groups who participated in EDSA II expressly stated that they did not want Arroyo for president either, and some of them would later participate in EDSA III. It must however be noted that the prevailing Constitution of the Philippines calls for the Vice-President of the Philippines, who at the time was Gloria Arroyo, to take the position of the President of the country during events that the current president cannot function in that capacity. During these demonstrations, Joseph Ejercito Estrada clearly was incapacitated, the government stiffled, and that was even before the Armed Forces withdrew its support for him as president.
International reaction
World reaction to the administration change was mixed. Though foreign nations, including the United States, immediately expressed recognition of the legitimacy of Arroyo's presidency, foreign commentators described the revolt as "a defeat for due process of law", "mob rule" and a "de facto coup".
See also
References
Day 3: The Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines withdraw their support for Estrada, joining the crowds at the EDSA Shrine.
At 5:00pm, Estrada appears on television for the first time since the beginning of the protests and maintains that he will not resign. He says he wants the impeachment trial to continue, stressing that only a guilty verdict will remove him from office.
At 6:15pm, Estrada again appears on television, calling for a snap presidential election to be held concurrently with congressional and local elections on May 14, 2001. He adds that he will not run in this election.
Day 4:
At noon, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo takes her oath of office in the presence of the crowd at EDSA, becoming the 14th president of the Philippines.
At 2:00 pm, Estrada releases a letter saying he had "strong and serious doubts about the legality and constitutionality of her proclamation as president", but saying he would give up his office to avoid being an obstacle to healing the nation.
Later, Estrada and his family leave Malacañang Palace, smiling and waving to reporters and shaking hands with the remaining members of his Cabinet and other palace employees. He was placed under house arrest and eventually confined to his rest home in Sampaloc, a small village in Tanay, Rizal.
Criticism
The only means of legitimizing the event was the last-minute Supreme Court ruling that "the welfare of the people is the supreme law." But by then, the Armed Forces of the Philippines days ago already withdrew support for the president, which some analysts call unconstitutional and most foreign political analysts would agree. William Overholt, a Hong Kong-based political economist said that "It is either being called mob rule or mob rule as a cover for a well-planned coup," "But either way, it's not democracy." It should also be noted that opinion was divided during EDSA II about whether Gloria Arroyo as the incumbent Vice-president should be president if Joseph Estrada was ousted; many groups who participated in EDSA II expressly stated that they did not want Arroyo for president either, and some of them would later participate in EDSA III. It must however be noted that the prevailing Constitution of the Philippines calls for the Vice-President of the Philippines, who at the time was Gloria Arroyo, to take the position of the President of the country during events that the current president cannot function in that capacity. During these demonstrations, Joseph Ejercito Estrada clearly was incapacitated, the government stiffled, and that was even before the Armed Forces withdrew its support for him as president.
International reaction
World reaction to the administration change was mixed. Though foreign nations, including the United States, immediately expressed recognition of the legitimacy of Arroyo's presidency, foreign commentators described the revolt as "a defeat for due process of law", "mob rule" and a "de facto coup".
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