PEOPLE POWER AT 40: THE SECRET RESISTANCE IN SILLIMAN UNIVERSITY’S CATACOMBS
The phrase “People Power at 40: The Secret Resistance in Silliman University’s Catacombs” refers to accounts of underground organizing against the Marcos dictatorship that reportedly took place on the Dumaguete campus in the 1970s and 1980s. Historians and former activists say that parts of the university, including basement and tunnel-like areas sometimes described as “catacombs,” were used as discreet meeting points and storage spaces for materials critical of the regime. These activities are being revisited as the Philippines marks four decades since the 1986 People Power Revolution, according to recent commemorative reports. Based on preliminary accounts, the Silliman stories are being framed as one local strand of the broader resistance that eventually fed into the nationwide movement.
Researchers note that Silliman University had a long tradition of student activism and church-linked advocacy, which shaped how opposition work was organized on campus. According to initial data from academic studies and oral histories, some faculty, students, and church workers allegedly helped circulate information, host discussions, and shelter individuals who felt at risk during martial law. These accounts emphasize that the so‑called catacombs functioned more as improvised safe spaces than as a formal underground network. Current write‑ups stress that such narratives help explain how resistance extended beyond Manila and into provincial schools and communities.
Today, scholars, alumni groups, and local institutions are compiling testimonies, documents, and photographs to verify details of what actually occurred in those underground spaces. Based on preliminary reports, they are cross‑checking personal recollections with available church records, campus archives, and human rights documentation from the martial law period. Authorities in education and heritage sectors are also reviewing how these stories might be integrated into teaching materials and memorial projects, while keeping to verifiable evidence. As the 40th anniversary of People Power is observed, these efforts aim to present a clearer, fact‑based picture of Silliman University’s role in the resistance, without embellishing or overstating what is known.
