Enrile laid to rest in Libingan ng mga Bayani
Juan Ponce Enrile was buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) in Taguig City on November 22.
Being a former defense minister, he was awarded "full military honors," which include a Philippine flag on his casket and a 21-gun salute.
Before the internment, a mass was held in his honor at Santuario de San Antonio in Makati City, followed by a funeral march at the LNMB gate.
The funeral was attended by friends and colleagues, including Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro and former senator Gringo Honasan.
Honasan was Enrile's aide in a February 1986 coup to take down the administration of the late Ferdinand Marcos Sr., which was eventually aborted and later led to the EDSA People Power Revolution.
'Historical distortion'
Before Enrile was laid to rest, several groups opposed his burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. In a joint statement, Tindig Pilipinas, with other organizations and individuals, maintained that Enrile was not a hero. "Remember his sins."
“Enrile’s burial at the LNMB, like the burial of the dictator in that same cemetery on November 18, 2016, will send the wrong message: that crime pays, that the corrupt and powerful can always escape punishment, and that murder and corruption can be rebranded in death as 'heroism'—while so many of their victims continue to endure pain and injustice,” their statement read.
“Let us make this clear: the burial of Juan Ponce Enrile at the Libingan ng mga Bayani is [a] historical distortion. It is a lie that once again whitewashes the crimes of the Marcos Sr. dictatorship."
Meanwhile, SELDA, an organization of former political prisoners in the Philippines, also expressed dismay at the burial.
"Enrile’s burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani is less a matter of his place of interment than the vicious rewriting of history," they stated. "SELDA denounces the gross injustice of bestowing honors on a fascist and crass opportunist like Enrile. He should not be hailed as a hero but be relegated to the dustbins of history where he belongs."
The LNMB is traditionally a resting place for Filipino soldiers, war veterans, martyrs, and ordinary citizens considered heroes. It is also home to deceased presidents, dignitaries, scientists, boy scouts, and AFP chiefs of staff.
According to the 2016 LNMB guidelines by the AFP, others qualified are medal of valor awardees, AFP generals/flag officers, active and retired AFP personnel, AFP personnel who transferred to the coast guard or police force, and statesmen as approved by the Commander-in-Chief, Congress, or Secretary of National Defense.
Enrile departed on November 13 at the age of 101 in a bout with pneumonia.
Serving as justice secretary from 1968 to 1970 and defense minister from 1970 to 1986, he is known to be the "Architect of Philippine Martial Law," and for helping Marcos Sr. establish a dictatorship that led to numerous human rights violations.
He became Senate president from 2008 to 2013 before he served as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s chief presidential legal counsel from 2022 to 2025.
He was arrested thrice for a 1989 coup attempt against Cory Aquino, a rebellion in 2001, and plunder in 2014, but was later freed. In October, the Sandiganbayan cleared him of all 15 graft cases linked to the pork barrel scam.
