We did not learn human rights from the books : the Philippines and human rights in the period 1986 to 1996 / [authors, Mercedes V. Contreras, et al.] ; edited by Evert de Boer, Huub Jaspers and Gerard Prickaerts in collaboration with The Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission (JPIC) of the AMRSP.

The presentation of this book on February 26, 1996 refers to an event in the Philippines, exactly ten years ago. An event that was world news at the time. On February 26, 1986 Ferdinand Marcos was dethroned through a non violent revolt the so called "Edsa revolution" and forced to leave the Philippines - he used a helicopter provided by the US government.. This put an end to more than ten years Marcos dictator- ship. Several authors of this book some of them victims of human rights violations and all of them without exception closely connected with the struggle for human rights describe and investigate how Filipinos have experienced the first ten years after Marcos. Did the successive administrations of the President Aquino (1986) and Ramos (1992-present) succeed to create a more safe and just society? Or do violence and suppression still put their stamp on the daily life of the majority of the almost seventy million Filipinos?