Thousands have gathered along Ayala Avenue in the Central Business District of Makati, Philippines on August 3, 2009 to pay their last respect to former President Corazon C. Aquino. Employees and Executives in the business district paused for more than two hours to participate in this final farewell.
Yellow confetti rained and people flashed the “L” hand sign for LABAN (to fight) as Aquino’s funeral procession went through Ayala Avenue. When the procession reached the monument of Mrs. Aquino’s late husband, Senator Benigno Aquino Jr., the crowd of thousands simultaneously sang "Bayan Ko" (My Country) and again flashed the "L” sign.
Mrs. Aquino, 76, died early Saturday at Makati Medical Center after a yearlong battle with colon cancer. She rose to prominence after the assassination in 1983 of her husband, opposition leader Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. The uprising she led in 1986 brought down the 20-year regime of Ferdinand Marcos and served as an inspiration to nonviolent resistance across the globe, including those that ended communist rule in eastern Europe.
Months before she was diagnosed with cancer, Aquino joined street protests organized amid opposition fears that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo could amend the country's 1987 Constitution to lift term limits or impose martial law to stay in power when her term ends next year. Mrs. Aquino will be remembered as the strong lady who restored democracy in the Philippines.
