Maria Corazon "Cory" Sumulong Aquino, popularly known as Cory Aquino, was a Filipina politician who was the 11th President of the Philippines, the first woman to hold that office and the first female president in Asia.
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco was born January 25, 1933, in the Tarlac Province to a wealthy political and banking family. She attended school in Manila until the age of 13, then finished her education in the United States, first in Philadelphia and later in New York City. She graduated from the College of Mount St. Vincent in New York in 1953, with a bachelor's degree in both French and mathematics. Upon returning to the Philippines, she enrolled in law school in Manila, where she met Benigno Aquino, Jr., an ambitious young journalist who also came from a family with considerable wealth. The couple married in 1954, and would go on to have five children together: Maria Elena ("Ballsy"; born 1954), Aurora Corazon ("Pinky"; born 1957), Benigno Simeon III ("Noynoy"; born 1960), Victoria Elisa ("Viel"; born 1961) and Kristina Bernadette ("Kris"; born 1971).
A self-proclaimed "plain housewife", she was married to Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr., the staunchest critic of President Marcos. She emerged as leader of the opposition after her husband was assassinated on August 21, 1983 upon returning to the Philippines from exile in the United States. In late 1985, Marcos called for snap elections, and Aquino ran for president with former senator Salvador Laurel as her Vice-President. After the elections were held on February 7, 1986, the Batasang Pambansa proclaimed Marcos and his running mate, Arturo Tolentino, as the winners amidst allegations of electoral fraud, with Aquino calling for massive civil disobedience actions. On February 22, 1986, disgruntled and reformist military officers led by then-Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile and General Fidel V. Ramos, surprised the entire nation and the international community when they announced their defection from the Marcos government, citing strong belief that Aquino was the real winner in the contested presidential elections.
Enrile, Ramos, and the rebel soldiers then set up operations in Camp Aguinaldo, the headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and Camp Crame (headquarters of the Philippine Constabulary) across Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA). Cardinal Sin appealed to the public in a broadcast over Church-run Radio Veritas, and millions of Filipinos trooped to the part of Epifanio De los Santos Avenue between the two camps to give their support and prayers for the rebels. At that time, Aquino was meditating in a Carmelite convent in Cebu, and upon learning of the defection, she urged people to rally behind Minister Enrile and General Ramos. Aquino flew back to Manila to prepare for the takeover of the government, and after three days of peaceful mass protests, was sworn in as the eleventh President of the Philippines on February 25, 1986.
She was the first female president of the country and the only president with no political background. She is also regarded as the first female president in Asia. One of Aquino's first moves was the creation of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), which was tasked to go after the Marcos ill-gotten wealth.
As President, Aquino oversaw the promulgation of the 1987 Constitution, which limited the powers of the Presidency and re-established the bicameral Congress. Her administration gave strong emphasis and concern for civil liberties and human rights, and on peace talks to resolve the ongoing Communist insurgency and Islamist secession movements. Her economic policies centred on restoring economic health and confidence and focused on creating a market-oriented and socially responsible economy.
During her last two years in office, President Aquino's administration faced series of natural disasters and calamities. Among these were the 1990 Luzon earthquake, which left around 1,600 people dead and the 1991 volcanic eruption of what was then thought to be a dormant Mount Pinatubo, which was the second largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century, killing around 300 people and causing widespread long-term devastation of agricultural lands in Central Luzon. On November 1, 1991 Tropical Storm Thelma (also known as Typhoon Uring) caused massive flooding in Ormoc City, leaving around 5,000 dead in what was then considered to be the deadliest typhoon in Philippine history. On November 8, Aquino declared all of Leyte a disaster area. On December 20, 1987, the MV Doña Paz sank which Time and others have dubbed as "the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster of the 20th century", given the death toll which were initially estimated to be around 1,500 which later grew for at least 3,000, and finally exceeded for about 4,300.
After Aquino retired to private life following the end of her term she remained active in the Philippine political scene, constantly voicing opposition and dissent to government actions and policies, which she deemed as threats to the liberal traditions and democratic foundations of the country. Aside from being visible in various political gatherings and demonstrations, Aquino was heavily involved in several charitable activities and socio-economic initiatives. From 1992 until her death, Aquino was chairperson of the Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. Foundation which she set up in her husband's honor right after his brutal assassination in 1983. Further, she supported other causes such as the Gawad Kalinga social housing project for the poor and homeless.
In 2008, Aquino was diagnosed with colorectal cancer from which she died on August 1, 2009. She was survived by her son, Benigno Aquino III, who was President of the Philippines from June 30, 2010 to June 30, 2016. Throughout her life, Aquino was known to be a devout Roman Catholic, and was fluent in French, Japanese and English aside from her native Tagalog and Kapampangan.
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