19 September, 1987
TODAY IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY:
Leandro Alejandro, a well-known student leader during martial law, was assassinated. Leandro, or Lean, participated in campus protests against martial law, joining open as well as clandestine groups in the University of the Philippines (UP). Soon he was a leader in these campus organizations, and by the early 1980s, was a key figure in the national anti-dictatorship movement.
More than his extraordinary height, Lean stood out as an activist because he possessed insight, a unifying approach, speaking and writing skills, and courage and boldness. Older and more experienced colleagues in the protest movement had him in high regard, and government negotiators who met Lean across the barricades gave him their grudging respect.
(Ref: bantayog.org; Photo from interaksyon.com)
