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Everyday Voices in Marginal Places: Political Anxiety, Resistance, and Mass
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Abstract:
This paper examines ordinary people’s voices by foregrounding their sentiments and perspectives
on Duterte’s imposition of martial law following the Marawi siege in May 2017. The paper
purposively privileges the voices of everyday citizens, which are often overlooked, to generate
alternative viewpoints to the elite-driven narratives dominating political discourses and counter
discourses. Drawing on 4-month extensive fieldwork in south-central Mindanao, we surface how
martial law has caused political anxiety, resistance, and widespread support despite its
tentativeness and apparent perplexities. We argue that the prevailing narratives of those in the
peripheries of Mindanao directly affected by martial law are sharply in contrast to the chilling and
attention-grabbing headlines. While the political atmosphere initially turned precarious and
tumultuous, the apparent military rule in fragile areas of Mindanao has actually gained traction
and widespread support. The article concludes that the populist appeal of Duterte’s version of the
military rule is synoptic of the multiple and pervasive sources of insecurity in large part of
Mindanao. Additionally, the public enticement of the current martial law is symptomatic of
swelling frustrations on the shortcomings of state’s apparatuses working within “democratic
terms” in addressing personal and communal insecurities.
Description:
Date:
2018
Authors:
Eliseo F. Huesca Jr.
Margie D. Fiesta
Publisher:
Institute of Asian Studies, Universiti Brunei Darussalam
