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As Lybia is consumed by a struggle for freedom, Muammar Gaddafi (معمر القذافي) has become one of the Walking Dead, a Zombie Dictator lurching toward his inevitable disintegration.
Gaddafi was killed October 20, 2011.
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The source image for this caricature is an image in the public domain from Defense Department Imagery.
Description: British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain receives the red carpet treatment in Rome from Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
Date: January 1939
Our Catalogue Reference: CO 1069/856
This image is from the collections of The National Archives. Feel free to share it within the spirit of the Commons.
For high quality reproductions of any item from our collection please contact our image library.
Full story: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benito_Mussolini
copyright : Marco Restano tutti i diritti riservati - all rights reserved
Libyan Dictator Muammar Gaddafi (معمر القذافي)
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Gaddafi was killed October 20, 2011.
The source image for this caricature is an image in the public domain from Defense Department Imagery.
A soldier is carried aloft by the jubilant crowd near the centre of Tahrir Square a few minutes after Mubarak announced his resignation - 11 February 2011.
Never before and possibly never again would the Egyptian military be quite so popular and as almost universally admired as it was at this moment . Rightly or wrongly the army was seen by the people as the saviour of the revolution.
Most analysts were more cynical and saw the military's decision to "side with the revolution" as a result not of sympathy for the protesters' demands but out of realization that this would be the best way to protect its' own privileged political and military influence.
Just a month later when soldiers forcibly cleared Tahrir Square of demonstrators a number of the women arrested were subjected to electric shocks, strip searches and forced virginity tests.
Views of the army among a few of the revolutionaries then began to change although the army as an institution still remained in high esteem among the general population even when later news also leaked out regarding the disappearances of civilians detained at army road block south of Cairo during the 18 day uprising and of others who had been detained near Tahrir Square and elsewhere and subsequently died while in military custody.
The Dictator NYC @Sala El Sol, Madrid.
12th November 2015
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All Rights Reserved
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In the evolving world we live in, it's no longer fashionable to be a bad dictator.
It's very important to be able to be a good dictator to ensure a prosperous healthy future.
British postcard by Real Photograph, London in the Film Partners series, no. P 166. Photo: Toeplitz. Madeleine Carroll and Clive Brook in The Dictator (Victor Saville, 1935).
British actress Madeleine Carroll (1906–1987) was a blonde beauty of a ladylike demeanour. The first of Alfred Hitchcock's ‘ice-cool blondes’ was immensely popular in the 1930s and 1940s, and was nicknamed 'The Queen of British Cinema'.
English film and stage actor Clive Brook (1887-1974) worked first in British films and then in Hollywood. The suave, handsome, distinguished leading man is best remembered as Marlene Dietrich’s love interest in Shanghai Express (1932).
For more postcards, a bio and clips check out our blog European Film Star Postcards or follow us at Tumblr or Pinterest.
Le Krewe d'Etat is a satirical New Orleans Mardi Gras krewe who first paraded in 1998. Their floats are intended to lampoon current events, politicians, socialites, business moguls, etc. Krewe d'Etat does not have a king or queen, but has a monarch known simply as "The Dictator," whose identity is held secret. Le Krewe d'Etat's motto is "Vivite ut Vehatis. Vehite ut Vevatis,"- “Live to Ride, Ride to Live!"
impeach trump, bad president, boycott trumps, America is in trouble, this is not American, make America great again, make America think again, unite, not my president, be vigilant, this is not normal, hitler, dictator, boycott middle America, embarrassing, sad, grab them by the pussy, liar, show your taxes, bad business, pay your employees, lawsuit, trumps America, drumpf
Corazon Aquino, Philippines president, dead at 76 Reuters – Former Philippine President Ex-Philippines leader Corazon Aquino dies at 76
MANILA, Philippines – Former President Corazon Aquino, who swept away a dictator with a "people power" revolt and then sustained democracy by fighting off seven coup attempts in six years, died on Saturday, her son said. She was 76.
The uprising she led in 1986 ended the repressive 20-year regime of Ferdinand Marcos and inspired nonviolent protests across the globe, including those that ended Communist rule in eastern Europe.
But she struggled in office to meet high public expectations. Her land redistribution program fell short of ending economic domination by the landed elite, including her own family. Her leadership, especially in social and economic reform, was often indecisive, leaving many of her closest allies disillusioned by the end of her term.
Still, the bespectacled, smiling woman in her trademark yellow dress remained beloved in the Philippines, where she was affectionately referred to as "Tita (Auntie) Cory."
"She was headstrong and single-minded in one goal, and that was to remove all vestiges of an entrenched dictatorship," Raul C. Pangalangan, former dean of the Law School at the University of the Philippines, said earlier this month. "We all owe her in a big way."
Her son, Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, said his mother died at 3:18 a.m. Saturday (1918 GMT Friday).
Aquino was diagnosed with advanced colon cancer last year and confined to a Manila hospital for more than a month. Her son said the cancer had spread to other organs and she was too weak to continue her chemotherapy.
Supporters have been holding daily prayers for Aquino in churches in Manila and throughout the country for a month. Masses were scheduled for later Saturday, and yellow ribbons were tied on trees around her neighborhood in Quezon city.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who is on an official visit to the United States, said in a statement that "the entire nation is mourning" Aquino's demise. Arroyo declared a period of national mourning and announced a state funeral would be held for the late president.
TV stations on Saturday were running footage of Aquino's years together with prayers while her former aides and supporters offered condolences.
"Today our country has lost a mother," said former President Joseph Estrada, calling Aquino "a woman of both strength and graciousness."
Even the exiled Communist Party founder Jose Maria Sison, whom Aquino freed from jail in 1986, paid tribute from the Netherlands.
Aquino's unlikely rise began in 1983 when her husband, opposition leader Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr., was assassinated on the tarmac of Manila's international airport as he returned from exile in the United States to challenge Marcos, his longtime adversary.
The killing enraged many Filipinos and unleashed a broad-based opposition movement atat thrust Aquino into the role of national leader.
"I don't know anything about the presidency," she declared in 1985, a year before she agreed to run against Marcos, uniting the fractious opposition, the business community, and later the armed forces to drive the dictator out.
Maria Corazon Cojuangco was born on Jan. 25, 1933, into a wealthy, politically powerful family in Paniqui, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of Manila.
She attended private school in Manila and earned a degree in French from the College of Mount St. Vincent in New York. In 1954 she married Ninoy Aquino, the fiercely ambitious scion of another political family. He rose from provincial governor to senator and finally opposition leader.
Marcos, elected president in 1965, declared martial law in 1972 to avoid term limits. He abolished the Congress and jailed Aquino's husband and thousands of opponents, journalists and activists without charges. Aquino became her husband's political stand-in, confidant, message carrier and spokeswoman.
A military tribunal sentenced her husband to death for alleged links to communist rebels but, under pressure from U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Marcos allowed him to leave in May 1980 for heart surgery in the U.S.
It was the start of a three-year exile. With her husband at Harvard University holding court with fellow exiles, academics, journalists and visitors from Manila, Aquino was the quiet homemaker, raising their five children and serving tea. Away from the hurly-burly of Philippine politics, she described the period as the best of their marriage.
The halcyon days ended when her husband decided to return to regroup the opposition. While she and the children remained in Boston, he flew to Manila, where he was shot as he descended the stairs from the plane.
The government blamed a suspected communist rebel, but subsequent investigations pointed to a soldier who was escorting him from the plane on Aug. 21, 1983.
Aquino heard of the assassination in a phone call from a Japanese journalist. She recalled gathering the children and, as a deeply religious woman, praying for strength.
"During Ninoy's incarceration and before my presidency, I used to ask why it had always to be us to make the sacrifice," she said in a 2007 interview with The Philippine Star newspaper. "And then, when Ninoy died, I would say, 'Why does it have to be me now?' It seemed like we were always the sacrificial lamb."
She returned to the Philippines three days later. One week after that, she led the largest funeral procession Manila had seen. Crowd estimates ranged as high as 2 million.
With public opposition mounting against Marcos, he stunned the nation in November 1985 by calling a snap election in a bid to shore up his mandate. The opposition, including then Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jaime L. Sin, urged Aquino to run.
After a fierce campaign, the vote was held on Feb. 7, 1986. The National Assembly declared Marcos the winner, but journalists, foreign observers and church leaders alleged massive fraud.
With the result in dispute, a group of military officers mutinied against Marcos on Feb. 22 and holed up with a small force in a military camp in Manila.
Over the following three days, hundreds of thousands of Filipinos responded to a call by the Roman Catholic Church to jam the broad highway in front of the camp to prevent an attack by Marcos forces.
On the third day, against the advice of her security detail, Aquino appeared at the rally alongside the mutineers, led by Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile and Lt. Gen. Fidel Ramos, the military vice chief of staff and Marcos' cousin.
From a makeshift platform, she declared: "For the first time in the history of the world, a civilian population has been called to defend the military."
The military chiefs pledged their loyalty to Aquino and charged that Marcos had won the election by fraud.
U.S. President Ronald Reagan, a longtime supporter of Marcos, called on him to resign. "Attempts to prolong the life of the present regime by violence are futile," the White House said. American officials offered to fly Marcos out of the Philippines.
On Feb. 25, Marcos and his family went to the U.S.-run Clark Air Base outside Manila and flew to Hawaii, where he died three years later.
The same day, Aquino was sworn in as the Philippines' first female leader.
Over time, the euphoria fizzled as the public became impatient and Aquino more defensive as she struggled to navigate treacherous political waters and build alliances to push her agenda.
"People used to compare me to the ideal president, but he doesn't exist and never existed. He has never lived," she said in the 2007 Philippine Star interview.
The right attacked her for making overtures to communist rebels and the left, for protecting the interests of wealthy landowners.
Aquino signed an agrarian reform bill that virtually exempted large plantations like her family's sugar plantation from being distributed to landless farmers.
When farmers protested outside the Malacanang Presidential Palace on Jan. 22, 1987, troops opened fire, killing 13 and wounding 100.
The bloodshed scuttled talks with communist rebels, who had galvanized opposition to Marcos but weren't satisfied with Aquino either.
As recently as 2004, at least seven workers were killed in clashes with police and soldiers at the family's plantation, Hacienda Luisita, over its refusal to distribute its land.
Aquino also attempted to negotiate with Muslim separatists in the southern Philippines, but made little progress.
Behind the public image of the frail, vulnerable widow, Aquino was an iron-willed woman who dismissed criticism as the carping of jealous rivals. She knew she had to act tough to earn respect in the Philippines' macho culture.
"When I am just with a few close friends, I tell them, 'OK, you don't like me? Look at the alternatives,' and that shuts them up," she told America's NBC television in a 1987 interview.
Her term was punctuated by repeated coup attempts — most staged by the same clique of officers who had risen up against Marcos and felt they had been denied their fair share of power. The most serious attempt came in December 1989 when only a flyover by U.S. jets prevented mutinous troops from toppling her.
Leery of damaging relations with the United States, Aquino tried in vain to block a historic Senate vote to force the U.S. out of its two major bases in the Philippines.
In the end, the U.S. Air Force pulled out of Clark Air Base in 1991 after the eruption of Mount Pinatubo forced its evacuation and left it heavily damaged. The last American vessel left Subic Bay Naval Base in November 1992.
After stepping down in 1992, Aquino remained active in social and political causes.
Until diagnosed with colon cancer in March 2008, she joined rallies calling for the resignation of President Arroyo over allegations of vote-rigging and corruption.
She kept her distance from another famous widow, flamboyant former first lady Imelda Marcos, who was allowed to return to the Philippines in 1991.
Marcos has called Aquino a usurper and dictator, though she later led prayers for Aquino in July 2009 when the latter was hospitalized. The two never made peace.
I was super excited to find the infamous Mercedes 600 sitting in a Whole Foods parking lot in Lake Forest. This car (which featured Mercedes's 6.3L V8 for the first time) was owned by everyone from Elvis to Pol Pot
Dictators' speech
Blasting off your life
M a m i y a 6 4 5 S u p e r + M a m i y a S e k o r 8 0 / 2 . 8
K o d a k E k t a c o l o r P r o 1 6 0
My no co$t campaign will be strictly grass-roots!
RULE # 1--Clean-up after yourselves!
RULE # 2--Pickup your own mess. & Keep your ass clean @ all times!
RULE #3--NO LAZYBONES! No work-No pay-No food-No shelter-you get the idea!SHORT-SELLING is NOT work! It is counter-productive bullshit! Get a real job & STOP selling us all short..our traditions, our ideals, & our heritage--WORLD-WIDE--Short-sellers=Get Out of Town{or, Our global village}!
RULE #4--Scientific endeavors will only be financed to cure diseases, eliminate hunger, abuse,malnutrition, & to create a peaceful planet--no more military-industrial complexes/no more
pathological maniacs running the world, its weapons of mass destruction, or bankers controlling the flow of investment. Focus on cleaning-up the world for future generations. Promote love & respect of all sentient creatures/lifeforms! BE RESPECTFUL!
RULE # 5--STAND YOUR OWN WATCH! You are ULTIMately responsible for your own protection & perpetuation...Creative genetics can eliminate sick minds that seek to abuse, misuse, murder & exploit fellow beings. Together, humankind & its companions will explore our planet in a positive, nurturing, safe & respectful manner! PAST MEMORIES--such as:
What about cops? GET REAL! DO YOU LIKE LIVING IN A POLICE STATE??? DO YOU LIKE LIVING IN A PLANET UNDER SEIGE??? GLOBAL CONTROL--thru Police--Armies--Banks--Media Propaganda--Threats! PRAY 4-World Peace--U.S.(1), EU{2}, CHINA(3), RUSSIA(4), BRAZIL(5)..& Everyone else, on their knees, & TAKE IT ALL B- AT-CHA! They used to OWN you! BUT NOW--
Collage-Nikov for Dictator=Loca'l Control!
TIME for REORGANIZING THE GLOBAL MONEY SYSTEM...TIME for WALL STREET to PAY THEIR DUES for Sucking the Life Out of Our Societies! Time for Short-selling Parasites to Do Some Jail Time--Bernie Madoff has 1000s of Friends/& Clones...FREE YOUR SELF! BE YOUR SELF! NO DOWN PAYMENTS-pay meants WAKE-UP! DESPIERTA! REORGANIZE the FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS! REIFICATION! DEMAND ACCOUNT -ABILITY! from these crooks! Demand JAIL TIME for those PARASITES!
RULE # 6--Your "Vote" does NOT mean shit! so, WAKE-UP & Get some REAL say in your "LIFE! Get you "family" & "friends" together--
FORM LOCAL TRIBES, & SHUT-DOWN the SYSTEM! BOYCOTT THEIR BULLSHIT-DEMAND TO BE HEARD...Street Theater! Performance Art! Music & Arts & Crafts & Collect resources & SHARE Your Stories & Learn Together!
MAKE REIFICATION WORK FOR ALL THE PEOPLE! Collage-Nikov for Dictator! Working for You--without spending a dime...working as ONE, we will make Technology work for the Progress of Humanity--NOT for Weapons!!!
SHUT-DOWN the WORLDWIDE GLOBAL MILITARY-INDUSTRIAL-GOVERNMENT COMPLEX NOW!
I happened upon a nice wall of stencils while strolling through the Candelaria neighborhood of Bogota, Colombia.
SHADE Corps's Dictator-Class Dreadnought is a special assault vehicle built from the strange technology on the Big World combined with the minifigure's innate ability to construct things with available things on hand.
This dreadnought are able to transport troops while providing heavy support in an assault operation. It is highly dangerous with it's various armaments available such as missile launchers, anti-air cannon, artillery gun, and the troops even can shoot from the firing ports on the sides and rear.
Powered by strange crystal contained on it's reactor, it can move both on land and floats on water, making it dangerous also in naval battle.
PS. yup, i know it's not even a lego build, it's only several parts of it lego, which is the cockpit and the side reactor, which is even unseen because of the chimney on the center. but this build also represents something related in my minifigure war between CSF and SHADE Corps.
The great Charles Chaplin in The Great Dictator (1940), a film written and directed by himself highly criticizing Hitler’s and Mussolini’s regimen of terror, violence and dehumanization. Here you have some trivia extracted from IMDb.
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«Charles Chaplin said that had he known the true extent of Nazi atrocities, he could not have made fun of their homicidal insanity.»
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«In Italy, all the scenes that involved Napaloni's wife were cut from the movie to respect Benito Mussolini's widow, Rachele. The complete version wasn't seen until 2002.»
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«General Dwight D. Eisenhower personally requested French dubbed versions of this film from Charles Chaplin, for distribution in France after the Allied victory there.»
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«When Charles Chaplin's young son, Sydney Chaplin, saw the scene where the artillery shell drops out of the supergun for the first time, he burst out laughing. It ruined the take.»
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«Charles Chaplin spent hours studying films of Adolf Hitler to perfect an imitation of his speaking style. He would eventually do this with a combination of nonsense syllables and isolated German words.»
#historiansunion #colored #colorized #history #ww2 #wwii #worldwartwo #military #war #thegreatdictator #chaplin #charliechaplin #england #cinema #art #grenade
On December 2, 1953, the Venezuelan dictator Colonel Marcos Pérez Jiménez, President of the Republic, inaugurated one of his major public works, a modern highway connecting the capital, Caracas, with the port of La Guaira.
It is an understatement to say the new road was a vast improvement over the old one. The old road was curvy (395 curves), steep (some grades were as steep as 12 percent) and very, very slow, with an average speed of 25 kilometers per hour (15 mph).
The new highway had only 36 curves, was shorter (17 km vs. 30 km.) and allowed traffic to move at between 60 and 80 kilometers per hour (37 to 49 mph). There were two long tunnels and two long viaducts.
When I was a kid, we had a contest to see who would be the first to see the sea from the car. The tunnels were deafening due to the ventilation fans and the sound of the other traffic.
Getting to and from the beach from the city was a breeze.
Today, thanks to Comandante Hugo Chávez's failed experiment with Socialism for the 21st Century, the highway is a dangerous place. Perhaps the recent security checkpoints have helped, but the conventional wisdom has been that the autopista should be avoided at night.
Colonel Pérez Jiménez must be rolling over in his grave.
See how I made this via a speed manipulation video at Youtube
More of my Creative Common images are available on my Picasa page.
If you find this image useful, please link it to my blog at: www.azrainman.com
ايستاده اي مغرور....
پاي مي كوبي بر زمين...
زمين مي خندد
تو مي انديشي
كه زمين مي لرزد!
ايستاده اي ،
به گمانت استوار
پاي مي كوبي بر زميني كه به گمانت براي تو كوچك است...
و من
مي بينم
كه روزي تمام عظمت تو در يك تابوت جا مي شود!
عليرضا نجفيان
1385/10/8
The Truth about Fidel and Raul
Soldi, Soldati e Stragi. Fidel Padre Padrone di tutti i Terrorismi.
In più di mezzo secolo Cuba ha Appoggiato, Armato e Addestrato Killer in tutto il mondo
American Liberals are praising Fidel Castro as if he was a “misunderstood political hero.” Insanity.
American Liberals, European leftist politicians and mass media are kneeling glorifying, honoring such a murder, CNN ran “tribute pieces” on the tyrant leader as if he were actually going to be missed.
My god, you idiot liberals - Cuban people fled for their lives to escape this madman.
Yet, liberals are treating a Communist tyrant like a folk hero.
Surrealist hands
© Iván Pawluk , reservados todos los derechos / all rights reserved
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القاتل فى لندن - مظاهرة ضد زيارة سيسي
Anti-Sisi protesters taunt the dictator's supporters who had been bused in by the Egyptian Embassy as chear leaders during Sisi's meeting with Cameron in London.
Why a depiction of Sisi as Mickey Mouse ? Because just the previous month an Egyptian Facebook user had been sentenced to three years in prison for photoshopping a picture of Sisi and adding the mickey mouse ears.
The idea and design of the placard used in the demonstration was a British woman's who was also among the protesters.
But unfortunately repression in Egypt is much much wider than arrests for trying to poke fun at your president.
Sisi's regime has been responsible for the death of hundreds of protesters on the streets, hundreds of disappearances and death sentences, a clampdown on the press and media, trade unions and universities and allowing key Mubarak figures to return to politics and big business.
After disbanding parliament, Sisi's regime decreed that the government could delegate business and construction projects to the military without any tender process and subsequently the Egyptian army has been awarded contracts worth billions of dollars.
Meanwhile anyone who speaks out, whether Islamist or secular, is at risk of arrest or being "disappeared" and currently it is estimated that the country has approximately 40,000 political prisoners.
This is what Human RIghts Watch conclude in their latest country report -
"Egypt’s human rights crisis, the most serious in the country’s modern history, continued unabated throughout 2014. The government consolidated control through constriction of basic freedoms and a stifling campaign of arrests targeting political opponents. Former Defense Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who took office in June, has overseen a reversal of the human rights gains that followed the 2011 uprising. Security forces and an increasingly politicized judiciary—apparently unnerved by rising armed group attacks—invoked national security to muzzle nearly all dissent."
Find out more
About Amr Nohan and his 3 year sentence for attaching "Mickey Mouse" ears to a Sisi photo -
advox.globalvoices.org/2015/10/14/egyptian-facebook-user-...
About Human Rights in Egypt .
www.amnesty.org/en/countries/middle-east-and-north-africa...
www.hrw.org/world-report/2015/country-chapters/egypt
freedomhouse.org/blog/stopping-egypt-s-downward-spiral-re...
( Freedom House uses one of my photos in its report. )
How to help/Join a campaign -
egyptsolidarityinitiative.org/
To email me for any reason
alisdare@gmail.com
The idea of a shrine of peace to serve as a memorial of the People Power Revolution came as an inspired thought to His Eminence Jaime Cardinal Sin two days after the dictator fled to exile in Hawaii.
The Cardinal was riding in the car together with Bishop Gabriel Reyes, then Auxiliary Bishop of Manila, en route to Camp Aguinaldo where they were to celebrate a Thanksgiving Mass. They came upon the intersection of EDSA and Ortigas, and Bishop Reyes pointed it out to the Cardinal as the spot where intrepid but gentle nuns and young men and women stood in front of the tanks and offered flowers to the soldiers.
At that corner, on an empty lot had stood two huge billboards of the Family Rosary Crusade, featuring the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the slogans, "The family that prays together stays together" and "A world at prayer is a world at peace." The felicitous coincidence could not but evoke the reality of Our Lady's presence at EDSA during the People Power Revolution.
Realizing this, the two could not help but recall the story of the "La Naval de Manila" and the Battle of Lepanto, which was fought on October 7, 1751. At this historic battle, Don Juan of Austria, with only a few ships defeated the Muslim Turks, whose ships had outnumbered theirs. Had the Turks won this battle, they could have overrun Europe, making the entire continent Muslim. The miraculous victory of the Christians was attributed to the intercession of the Blessed Mother to whom the people of Rome prayed unceasingly with their rosaries and in processions, asking for help to win the battle. To thank the Lord for the victory, Pope St. Pius V in 1572 instituted the feast of Our Lady of Victory. A year later, Pope Gregory X changed the name to the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.
The Feast of La Naval de Manila was also instituted in thanksgiving to the Lord for another naval victory. During the Spanish times, the Protestant Dutch tried to conquer Manila. However, the Spanish fleet manned by Spaniards and Filipinos roundly defeated the far-superior naval force of the Dutch. This naval victory was attributed to our Blessed Mother of the Most Holy Rosary because as the naval battle was raging, the people of Manila continually prayed the rosary. This is the origin of the Feast of La Naval de Manila, which is celebrated (in a very special way in the Sto. Domingo Parish in Quezon City) on the first Sunday of October.
The EDSA Revolution was more miraculous than the Battle of Lepanto or the "La Naval de Manila." Thus did the idea of a memorial structure to thank the Lord and the Blessed Mother for the peaceful EDSA Revolution come to mind.
Cardinal Sin then set into motion a series of steps to turn his idea into reality. The owners of the land, the Ortigas and Gokongwei families, were approached and they donated the prime corner lot. The architectural and structural design for the church was undertaken by Architect Francisco Mañosa with preparatory work from National Artist Architect Leandro Locsin and Architect William Coscolluela.
Architect Mañosa designed the Shrine to evoke the freedom of movement and celebratory spirit of the original EDSA Revolution. The Shrine is to open out to the streets with the image of Our Lady of Queen of Peace, as sculpted in bronze by the late artist Virginia Ty-Navarro, forming the apex of the structure. The promenade is accessible through cascading stairs and ramps from EDSA and Ortigas Avenue. The center of this plaza faces the convergence of the two main roads and has become the site of the Eucharistic celebration held each year to commemorate the People Power Revolution.
Various works of art symbolize the spirit of freedom and peace at the Shrine's promenade area. At one end is the "Flame of Freedom," a sculpture done by artist Manny Casal of three hardy men bearing a cauldron of flame over their shoulders, representing the Philippines' three major islands, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Throughout the plaza are the 14 Stations of the Cross as rendered in bronze by national artist Napoleon Abueva.
At one corner are the carillon bells, which were crafted by some friends from Holland from the bullets and cannons of the Second World War. At given intervals during the day, the bells chime familiar patriotic and religious tunes, mostly evoking sentiments of the People Power Revolution.
The main chapel spans the breadth of the entire intersection and is accessible from either avenue. At each side are chapels, one the San Lorenzo Ruiz chapel and the other the Chapel of Perpetual Adoration. Natural lighting is obtained from all sides, except the main altar wall, which draws light from the skylight above. This skylight is diffused by a stained glass ceiling designed by artist Eduardo Castrillo.
Within the main chapel, a floating glass sculpture of the Risen Christ by Ramon Orlina overlooks the main marble altar also created by Abueva. The upper walls are muted murals that depict and interpret the four-day revolution by 15 artists from Angono, Rizal, led by Nemi Miranda. The art works "Doves of Peace," also by Casal, rest gently on the holy water fonts by the entrances.
At the chapel of the perpetual adoration the Blessed Sacrament is dramatically exposed through the monstrance-sculpture done by Castrillo.
At the other side chapel named after the first Filipino saint, San Lorenzo Ruiz, there is a wall mural depicting the saint's life painted by artist Ben Alano.
These works by Filipino artists – architects, sculptors and painters – form a unique collection that pays tribute to the indomitable spirit of the Filipino people. These works inspire, elevate, comfort and cheer, and in their unifying purpose, bring the people who visit, pray and celebrate in the Shrine closer to God, the source of peace.
In time, the other rooms in the Shrine gave way to the needs of the people. Thus at the Ortigas side, a small room was built called Silid Leonarda, named after one of the Shrine's dedicated early community members, a Papal awardee, fondly called Tita Leony (Leonarda Torres) who died in 1996. Another room, Silid Assisi, was built at the EDSA side of the Shrine. In 1998, soon after the celebration of the anniversary of the EDSA Revolution in February, construction for the Serviam Hall on a portion of the promenade began. Within three weeks, the hall, named after the motto of Jaime L. Cardinal Sin which means "I serve," was inaugurated. The hall has fittingly become the venue of the Shrine's formation activities (Fullness of Life seminars, catechism for the sacraments of confirmation and matrimony, spiritual nourishment recollections of the Shrine's various groups.) Once again, Architect Mañosa designed the hall to blend with the original architecture of the Shrine, unobtrusive from afar because of its glass walls.
The construction of the original Shrine was almost complete by late November of 1989 and preparations were underway to have it inaugurated on December 8, 1978, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.
But once again the country was rocked by threats to its democracy. An attempted coup d'etat broke out on November 29, 1989. The inauguration had to be postponed as the government thwarted the rebellion of a military reformist group. At the height of the uprising, some of the military rebels entered the Shrine, but did not do any damage to the unfinished structure.
His Eminence did not postpone the set inauguration certain that, with prayers to the Blessed Mother, the Shrine would be completed by December 8. The putschists finally surrendered on December 7. Amid the somber aftermath of the failed coup, but with quiet rejoicing among the faithful, the Shrine of Mary Queen of Peace (Our Lady of EDSA) Shrine was formally consecrated to God and dedicated to the Blessed Mother on December 15, 1989.