Students walk out to protest Edsa anniversary downgrade

Students and progressive groups across the Philippines, including in the Visayas, held walkouts and rallies on February 25 to commemorate the 39th anniversary of the Edsa People Power Revolution.

The actions were a protest against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s administration for downgrading the commemoration from a special non-working holiday to a special working holiday.

In Tacloban City, around 100 students from the University of the Philippines walked out to protest Malacañang's decision, sending a message against erasing the history of student resistance.

In Iloilo, approximately 500 members of multi-sectoral groups and some students joined a rally, emphasizing that the Edsa uprising was a culmination of Filipino struggles against the Marcoses' abuses.

The Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) Student Regent criticized the PUP administration for not declaring February 25 as a holiday, deeming it 'historical distortion'.

Students marched with placards, demanding accountability, an end to corruption, transparency in the 2025 budget, and opposition to injustices of the Marcos Sr. regime.

PUP President Manuel Muhi stated that as a state university, PUP could not suspend classes like other schools, while President Marcos Jr. has downplayed the commemoration throughout his term.