Edmundo "Ed" Guidote Garcia (born February 3, 1943) is a Filipino human rights activist, peace advocate, and writer. Garcia is best known for having served as one of the

framers The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia from May 25 to September 17, 1787. While the convention was initially intended to revise the league of states and devise the first system of Federal government of the United States, fede ...

of the

1987 Philippine Constitution The Constitution of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas'' or ''Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas'') is the supreme law of the Philippines. Its final draft was completed by the Constitutional Commission on October 12, 1986, and rati ...

wherein which he advocated for the inclusion of human rights and social justice provisions in the charter, under the mentorship of CHR chairman and the acknowledged "Father of Human Rights" Jose W. Diokno. In 1970, then a seminarist, he co-founded the militant youth political movement LAKASDIWA ''(Lakas ng Diwang Kayumanggi)''. The movement and its distinct political ideology ( Filipino Social Democracy) sought to create a nonviolent path towards social change through a "parliamentary of the streets," drawing from diverse sources such as

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

, Martin Luther King, Jr., Liberation Theology, including indigenous philosophies. The group was conceived as an alternative to the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist (MLM) ideology of the

Communist Party of the Philippines The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP; ) is a far-left, Marxist–Leninist–Maoist revolutionary organization and communist party in the Philippines, formed by Jose Maria Sison on 26 December 1968. The CPP has been fighting a gue ...

(CPP) and the National Democratic Front (NDF) which called for armed struggle.

Early life

Garcia received his early education at the Ateneo de Manila University. Among his professors were the Filipino Jesuits

Horacio de la Costa Horacio Villamayor de la Costa (May 9, 1916 – March 20, 1977) was a Filipino Jesuit priest, historian and academic. He was the first Filipino Provincial Superior of the Society of Jesus in the Philippines, and a recognized authority in Phili ...

and

Roque Ferriols Rev. Fr. Roque J. Ferriols, SJ full name Roque Angel Jamias Ferriols, (August 16, 1924 – August 15, 2021) was a Filipino Jesuit priest and philosopher known for pioneering the use of Tagalog in philosophizing. Ferriols' efforts are intimatel ...

. A seminarist, he finished his degree in philosophy at the Loyola House of Studies, School of Theology. His postgraduate studies came at

Universidad Javeriana The Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (English: Xavierian Pontifical University) is a private university in Colombia founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest and most traditional Colombian universities, directed by the Society of Jesus, with its ...

in Bogota, Universidad Catolica in Lima, and

Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

in Mexico City. He did further studies on peace research at the University of Uppsala Peace Conflict Analysis Centre and the University of Oslo Blindhern Campus. He also did a fellowship at the University of Otago Peace Centre in Dunedin, New Zealand. In 1970, then a seminarist, he co-founded the militant youth political movement LAKASDIWA ''(Lakas ng Diwang Kayumanggi)''. The movement and its distinct political ideology ( Filipino Social Democracy) sought to create a nonviolent path towards social change through a "parliamentary of the streets," drawing from diverse sources such as

, Martin Luther King, Jr., Liberation Theology, including indigenous philosophies. The group was conceived as an alternative to the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist (MLM) ideology of the

(CPP) and the National Democratic Front (NDF) which called for armed struggle.

Career

Garcia served as researcher at the international secretariat of

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

and is a member of the board of trustees of its local chapter. He also served as peace envoy and policy adviser at

International Alert International Alert is a global peacebuilding charity established in 1986. It aims to promote dialogue, training, research, policy analysis, advocacy, and outreach activities. The organization addresses the root causes of conflict by working wi ...

, a non-governmental peace-building organization working in Asia, Latin America, Africa, and Europe. He taught at Colegio de Mexico in the 1970s and regularly lectured at Escola de Pau (School of Peace) at

Universitat de Barcelona The University of Barcelona (official name in ; UB), formerly also known as Central University of Barcelona (), is a public university, public research university located in the city of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was established in 1450. Wi ...

and at the Erasmus Program on Human Rights, Migration, and Development at

University of Bologna The University of Bologna (, abbreviated Unibo) is a Public university, public research university in Bologna, Italy. Teaching began around 1088, with the university becoming organised as guilds of students () by the late 12th century. It is the ...

. Garcia also taught political science at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

and Latin American Studies at the Ateneo de Manila University. Garcia currently serves as consultant for the formation of scholar-athletes at

Far Eastern University Far Eastern University (), also referred to by its acronym FEU, is a Private university, private research non-sectarian university in Manila, Philippines. Created by the merger of Far Eastern College and the Institute of Accounts, Business and ...

. He has written several opinion pieces published in the online news website

Rappler Rappler (portmanteau of the words "rap" and "ripples") is a Mass media in the Philippines, Filipino online news website based in Pasig, Metro Manila, the Philippines. It was founded by 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and convicted cyberlibelist ...

Political involvement

In 1970, Garcia co-founded the militant youth political movement LAKASDIWA ''(Lakas ng Diwang Kayumanggi).'' The movement and its distinct political ideology (Filipino Social Democracy) sought to create a nonviolent path towards social change, drawing from diverse sources such as

, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Liberation Theology, including indigenous philosophies. The ''tambuli'' (carabao horn) was used as a symbol of the group. LAKASDIWA was conceived as an alternative to the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist (MLM) ideology of the CPP-NPA-NDF which called for armed struggle. Among Marxists and more radical formations, the movement was often derided as being too moderate and bourgeois, and its members branded as "clerico-fascists," alluding to its close ties to the

Catholic hierarchy The hierarchy of the Catholic Church consists of its bishops, priests, and deacons. In the ecclesiological sense of the term, "hierarchy" strictly means the "holy ordering" of the church, the Body of Christ, so to respect the diversity of gif ...

and the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

-run Ateneo de Manila University. During martial law, members of LAKASDIWA formed the

Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas The Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas (PDSP), also known as Philippine Democratic Socialist Party, is a political party in the Philippines. It is one of the member parties that composed the ''United Nationalist Democratic Organization'' ...

that also shared a Social Democratic alternative to the Marcos regime. Later, Garcia became a member of KAAKBAY, a broad nationalist political movement against the

Marcos dictatorship At 7:15 p.m. on September 23, 1972, President Ferdinand Marcos announced on television that he had placed the Philippines under martial law, stating he had done so in response to the "communist threat" posed by the newly founded Communist Party ...

led by imprisoned senator Jose W. Diokno. After the

1986 People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, were a series of popular demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a sustained campaign of ...

which ended the

Marcos Marcos may refer to: People with the given name ''Marcos'' *Marcos (given name) * Marcos family Sports ;Surnamed * Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century) * Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer * Né ...

regime, Garcia was appointed by the Aquino government as a representative in the 1986 Constitutional Commission tasked to create a "Freedom Constitution." He served as one of the framers of the

and together with youth representative

Chito Gascon Jose Luis Martin Cosgayon Gascon (; 26 May 1964 – 9 October 2021), also known as Chito Gascon (), was a Filipino lawyer, civic organizer, and human rights activist. In 2015, he was appointed by then President Benigno S. Aquino III as the Chai ...

were key advocates for the inclusion of human rights and social justice provisions in the charter; he consulted Diokno a fortnight before the plebiscite. Garcia later helped establish the ''Kilusan Laban sa Kudeta'' (KILOS) in 1989 during the turbulent Aquino years and participated in the Coalition for Peace in 1986, the Gaston Z. Ortigas (GZO) Peace Institute in 1989, and the Multi-Sectoral Peace Advocates and the National Peace Conference in 1990. Garcia is also one of the Board of Directors of the Jose W. Diokno Foundation.

Recognition

In 2015, Garcia was conferred the ''Parangal Lingkod Sambayanan'', a public service award by the Ateneo de Manila University.

Selected works

* ''A Journey of Hope.'' (1987). * ''The Filipino Quest.'' (1988). Claretian Publications. * ''The Sovereign Quest.'' (1988). Claretian Publications. * ''The Unfinished Quest.'' (1989). Claretian Publications. * "A Man of Uncommon Valor" (on Jose W. Diokno). In ''Six Modern Filipino Heroes.'' (1993). * ''Courage!.'' (2018). Jesuit Communications Office. * ''Stories and Struggle: SocDem Narratives.'' (2020). * ''Dugout Diaries: The Championship Run.'' (2020). Far Eastern University. * ''Defiant Hope: Quarantine Stories from a Distance.'' (2020). ABS-CBN Books. * ''Seachange! Successor Generation'' (2020). ABS-CBN Books. * ''Companions: XJ Narratives'' (2021). (Co-editor). San Anselmo Press. * ''Servant Leader: Leni Robredo.'' (2020/2022). San Anselmo Press. * ''Reinventing Resistance: Memoirs of an Accidental Activist.'' (2025). San Anselmo Press.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Ed 1943 births Living people Filipino writers Filipino human rights activists Ateneo de Manila University alumni Members of the Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986