The Laban sign is a Filipino hand gesture made by extending the thumb horizontally and the index finger pointing up, leaving the other fingers closed to create the letter L, which stands for laban (Filipino for "fight"). It is sometimes mistaken for the mildly offensive Western "loser" [1] and "raised gun" gestures, to which it is unrelated.
The term "LABAN" is an abbreviation of Lakas ng Bayan ("People's Power"), a former political coalition organised by opposition Senator Benigno S. Aquino Jr. for the 1978 Interim Batasang Pambansa regional elections. [2] The gesture was popularized in 1983 during Senator Aquino's funeral, and the 1986 People Power Revolution that his assassination had precipitated. [1] The Laban sign branding was bestowed on Ninoy's widow, Cory Aquino, along with the color yellow by Public Relations practitioner Reli German. [3]
In 2009, the Laban sign was again widely seen during the funeral of Cory Aquino, [1] and the subsequent presidential campaign of their son, President Benigno Aquino III, before the 2010 Philippine elections. In 2021, upon announcing the presidential bid of Vice President Leni Robredo for the upcoming 2022 elections, the gesture was associated with her campaign.
Maria Corazon "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was a Filipino politician who served as the eleventh president of the Philippines from 1986 to 1992. She was the most prominent figure of the 1986 People Power Revolution, which ended the two-decade rule of President Ferdinand Marcos and led to the establishment of the current democratic Fifth Philippine Republic.
Benigno Simeon Aquino III, also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th President of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of assassinated politician Benigno Aquino Jr. and 11th President of the Philippines Corazon Aquino, he was a fourth-generation politician as part of the Aquino family of Tarlac.
The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a sustained campaign of civil resistance against regime violence and electoral fraud. The nonviolent revolution led to the departure of Ferdinand Marcos, the end of his 20-year dictatorship and the restoration of democracy in the Philippines.
Aquilino Quilinging Pimentel Jr., commonly known as Nene Pimentel, was a Filipino politician and human rights lawyer who was one of the leading political opposition leaders during the regime of Ferdinand Marcos from the declaration of martial law in 1972 until the People Power Revolution in 1986, which removed Marcos from power. He co-founded the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP–Laban) and served as the President of the Senate of the Philippines from 2000 to 2001. He is the father of incumbent senator and former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III. In 2018, Pimentel was identified by the Human Rights Victims' Claims Board as a Motu Proprio human rights violations victim of the Martial Law Era.
The Partido Demokratiko Pilipino is a syncretic political party in the Philippines founded in 1982. It was previously known as Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP–Laban) from 1983 to 2024 as a result of a merger with Lakas ng Bayan (Laban). It was part of the country's ruling party coalition from 1986 to 1992 under the administration of Corazon Aquino and the country's ruling party from 2016 to 2022 under the administration of Rodrigo Duterte.
Manuel "Mar" Araneta Roxas II is a Filipino politician who served as a Senator of the Philippines. He is the grandson and namesake of former Philippine President Manuel Roxas. He served in the Cabinet of the Philippines as Secretary of the Interior and Local Government from 2012 to 2015. Previously, he was the Secretary of Trade and Industry from 2000 to 2003 and Secretary of Transportation and Communications from 2011 to 2012. He is the son of former Senator Gerry Roxas.
This article covers the history of the current Philippine republican state following the 1986 People Power Revolution, known as the Fifth Philippine Republic.
Ninoy Aquino Day is a national non-working holiday in the Philippines observed annually on August 21 commemorating the assassination of former Senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. was the husband of Corazon Aquino, who later became 11th Philippine President. His assassination led to the downfall of the 10th president of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos, on February 25, 1986, through the People Power Revolution. Since 2004, a commemoration ceremony is traditionally held that was attended by presidents Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Fidel V. Ramos and Benigno Aquino III.
The 2010 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on Monday, May 10, 2010. The ruling President of the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, was ineligible to seek re-election as per the 1987 Constitution, thus necessitating an election to select the 15th President.
Corazon Cojuangco-Aquino, the 11th President of the Philippines, died on August 1, 2009, at the Makati Medical Center in Makati of cardiorespiratory arrest after being in hospital since June 2009, and was first diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2008.
The 2010 election of members to the Senate of the Philippines was the 30th election to the Senate of the Philippines. It was held on Monday, May 10, 2010, to elect 12 of the 24 seats in the Senate. The winners in this election joined the winners of the 2007 election to form the 15th Congress of the Philippines. The senators elected in 2007 will serve until June 30, 2013, while the senators elected in this election will serve up to June 30, 2016. The 2010 presidential election, elections to the House of Representatives as well as local elections occurred on the same date. The Philippines uses plurality-at-large voting for seats in the Senate: the twelve candidates with the highest number of votes wins the twelve seats up for election.
Danilo "Danny" Delapuz Lim was a Filipino soldier who served as Chair of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority from 2017 until his death in 2021. He was incarcerated at Camp Crame in Quezon City from 2006 to 2010 for rebellion charges and an attempted coup d'état. After more than 4 years in prison, Lim was granted temporary freedom by the Armed Forces of the Philippines on May 31, 2010.
Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr., a former Philippine senator, was assassinated on Sunday, August 21, 1983, on the tarmac of Manila International Airport. A longtime political opponent of President Ferdinand Marcos, Aquino had just landed in his home country after three years of self-imposed exile in the United States when he was shot in the head while being escorted from an aircraft to a vehicle that was waiting to transport him to prison. Also killed was Rolando Galman who was accused of murdering Aquino.
Paolo Benigno "Bam" Aguirre Aquino IV is a Filipino politician and social entrepreneur who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 2013 to 2019. He is a member of the prominent Aquino family in the Philippines.
The presidency of Benigno Aquino III began on June 30, 2010, when he became the 15th president of the Philippines, succeeding Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. His term ended on June 30, 2016. Aquino, the third-youngest person elected president, is the only son of the 11th president, Corazon Aquino, and former senator Benigno Aquino Jr.
The 2010 presidential campaign of Benigno Aquino III, then Philippine Senator, began when he announced his candidacy for the presidency of the Philippines at the Club Filipino, Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila, on September 9, 2009, 40 days after the death of his mother, former President Corazon Aquino. On September 21, 2009, Aquino's campaign announced that Senator Mar Roxas would be his vice presidential nominee.
The 2016 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on Monday, May 9, 2016, as part of the 2016 general election. This was the 16th direct presidential election in the Philippines since 1935 and the fifth sextennial presidential election since 1992.
The 2016 presidential campaign of Manuel "Mar" Roxas II, former Senator of the Philippines and former Secretary of the Interior and Local Government was announced on July 31, 2015. At an event dubbed as "A Gathering of Friends", Mar Roxas formally accepted his party's nomination as the Liberal Party standard bearer after he was officially endorsed by President Benigno Aquino III in the presence of their political allies at the Club Filipino.
The 2019 election of members to the Senate of the Philippines was the 33rd election of members to the Senate of the Philippines for a six-year term. It was held on May 13, 2019.
The Aquino family of Tarlac is one of the most prominent families in the Philippines because of their involvement in politics. Some family members are also involved in other fields such as business and entertainment.