UG, An Underground Tale: The Journey of Edgar Jopson and the First Quarter Storm Generation

by Benjamin Pimentel, Jovito R. Salonga (Foreword by), Gloria A. Jopson-Kintanar (Afterword by)

This book traces the unique, dramatic odyssey of the most intriguing figure of the First Quarter Storm and of the generation of young Filipinos who helped shape Philippine history.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

284 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2006

Reviews

[Liezl · Rating 5 out of 5]

At least I have an idea of how hard life was for them when Martial Law was declared. They need to sacrifice everything for the sake of "masa" who suffers at the hands of the dictatorship and those greedy politicos that lead to anger and blood baths across the land where once the Filipino spirit was united. This book changed my perspective on armed struggle and its principles. I salute those people who offer their lives to our country just to get the anticipated prospect of freedom.

[Julius]

tingin ko dapat mabasa sa una yung after word. para mabigyan konteksto yung rejectionist pov. but either way, very grounded naman yung pagkakasulat ng talambuhay ni edjop. nakaka-agit.

[Highnyzbibliofiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would give a different take in this review. This book has move me in a unique way as I viewed it as a story of how faith and religion can move mountains.

Edjop, was a graduate of Ateneo and I believe his fight for the rights of the Filipino people is rooted from what he the Jesuit’s philosophy of being a man for others. What can be a greatest way for showing God’s love is to live for others than for oneself. And Edjop did that.

One scene that made me teary-eyed was the story of the farmers from La Union who embraced Edjop upon seeing him. It was the wholeness of Edjop that radiated humility, charisma, and solidarity with the poor in spirit. They trust him and this was just one of the many ways he worked for others.

The way he withstood the dangers of the Philippine Constabulary just to fight for the people was quite remarkable. Like what he did with the laborers who had encountered unjust working conditions. His courage is truly admirable. I believe he had the gift of wisdom and understanding, and he used it for others.

He always had a heart for others.

There are no words for the people mentioned in this book who had shown their courage and their struggles. Some scenes still linger in my mind, showing how these people demonstrated fearlessness:

• The priests and nuns who held the bus doors just to stop the protesters from being detained.
• A female detainee who, instead of losing her sanity, found courage upon learning of Edjop’s death.
• The strength of Joy Jopson, who mourned in silence because she could not be seen in public.

There was also the question of whether Edgar was an atheist. His family could not attest to it, for he lived a selfless life and remained committed to his cause which is to live for others.

[Thandie]

I wasn't able to attend the book re-launch here in Ateneo, but I was able to obtain a copy. I'd vaguely known about EdJop before, partly because of news of the upcoming film starring Elijah Canlas, but I had only come to know more about him after getting more involved in the political scene here in Ateneo. He, apparently, was a well-respected, heavily admired, and remarkably bold student leader within Ateneo and went on to take his revolutionary actions underground during the Marcos dictatorship. Since learning about him, warts and all, I've grown to respect him greatly. The book itself is the same. No frills, no unnecessary flowery meandering. It presents the facts, what people thought of him, and the thesis of EdJop as a flawed man whose bravery should still be something we aspire to. I'd read biographies before, but many of them were thick and wordy. Not to say I don't like thick and wordy, but it's refreshing to read a biography you're not lulled by and instead riveted by, because of its simple language and to-the-point reportage of the man amidst a movement. I'm intrigued by biographies of this nature, which use less words to say more, and explicitly mean to get me up off my feet and do something about the world we live in.

[Harold · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s a history of a generation that was waylaid by Martial Law. The story of Edjop and many in the book tells us of the many decisions and passions that led them to go against the tide. But for me, the most telling is amongst the personalities mentioned, how many stayed true, how many have strayed and how many have succumbed to the power that they were railing against. As for Edjop, and many of those who perished including those he shared the painting with during Ninoy’s funeral procession, they stand immortalised of the life they lived, as paragons that never lived long enough to see the betrayal of their idealism.

[Ice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cried when reading this for the second time. You'll understand why if you read it yourself. It's an inspiring read. UG tells not just the history of Edgar Jopson, it tells of the history of a nation.

[Sankat Patel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book to read while in the Philipense.

[Charmm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edjop represented everything the Ateneo could hope for. Of course the institution let everyone down including Edjop. At least consistent dibaaa

[Veron · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Ang pagbabago sa kanyang pananaw, pagbabago rin sa buhay niya."

U.G by Benjamin Pimentel is a comprehensive posthumous biography of Edgar “Edjop” Jopson, arguably the most notable of student activists that struggled under Marcos' Martial Law. With stories gathered by the author from interviews and written records, the book traces Edjop’s life in its different phases. This is intertwined with the wider history of the country and the mass resistance movement, providing context for those unfamiliar. The book is very readable, thanks to the clear and informative writing and the effective division of the short, focused, chapters. Also because of the inherent cinematic quality of Edjop’s life, complete with twists and foreshadowings.

I like how the upcoming movie adaptation opted to be named simply “Edjop” instead of this mouthful of a book title that risks sensationalization of the "underground". The book is neatly divided into six parts, plus a lot of additional content including write-ups from Edjop’s wife and daughters. In the movie tie-in 2025 edition, there are also essays from the cast of the movie.

The first of six parts is about Edjop’s upbringing which showed how qualities that would shape his later life were already apparent in him as a child. The second part is where the story gets political: we follow his rise as an exemplary student leader in Ateneo de Manila University then leading the National Union of Students in the Philippines (NUSP) as, at the time controversial, a moderate social democrat during the First Quarter Storm. This is when he still believed in reform to the point of having a meeting with Marcos himself. Part 2 ends with his eventual radicalization through a lot of ways including exposure trips in the Philippine provinces and in China just in time before the declaration of Martial Law.

Parts 3 - 6 covers his time as a cadre of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), in which he voluntarily applied to. After disillusionment in law school, he worked as an organizer of trade unions in Metro Manila. He played a key role in the revival of worker strikes under Martial Law, starting with the historic La Tondena strike. He eventually needed to go underground due to his prominence. As he rose through the ranks of the Party, he got assigned to different places including Bataan to organize in the countryside and played important roles such as in the formation of the National Democratic Front (NDF) . He got caught by the military but later got out. His final days were spent in Mindanao where he basically shaped the systems for more effective work in the area. Numerous chapters are dedicated to the events surrounding his death in 1982 and the small things that would’ve made all the difference in that day. He didn’t live to see the eventual split of the Party, which would be covered in the post-scripts of the book.

What I appreciated most about the book is that the many sources and perspectives are collated and taken into account to provide an as-whole-as-possible picture of Edjop’s humanity. At the time this was first released in 2006, there were already various contrasting points of view of the events covered in the book. Here he was as a son, brother, student, student-leader, catholic, husband, cadre, organizer, and fighter. Here were the traits that he carried throughout his different roles, here are the values and beliefs he lived and died for, under a movement that he had some problems with but nonetheless believed in. In contrast with all of his perfect-ness, here were the flaws that his peers have observed and remember years after his death.

The undeniable remains. Edjop’s life, his skills and intellect were dedicated to serving the masses. The book is a well-rounded overview of this. In the best way, he embodied the ideal, romantic narrative of the underground movement: a (Atenean) burgis who learned about the true conditions of his country and sacrificed all the comforts of his life to live and die working for its true liberation.

[Erwin Tenorio · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collective story of the tragedy of the Filipino people. I always thought that Marcos destroyed the future of the Philippines when he declared Martial Law, and I still believe that. But he was not alone in that. Marcos, for the worst, had all the dangerous qualities of a consequential leader, intelligent but very insecure, selfish, greedy, cold-blooded, a liar, a thief, manipulative.

He was helped the most by no other than the communist ideology that was poisoning the minds of the country's best and brightest of that time. That "idea" empowered the best and the brightest to arrogantly humiliate and make fun of Marcos and his family - which threatened Marcos and his minions as well. This was eventually used by Marcos to justify Martial Law. And the rest is history, a cycle and recycle of the same sad stories of tragedies from incompetence, corruption, immorality, evil. And if not tragedies, comedies that only the fools still find amusing. Until now, the country has not recovered.

[Bianca Nagac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptionally written. It seems Benjamin is entrusted by Edjop to write his biography. It's rare to read a book that makes you strongly feel the presence of the subject. Edjop's ideals in life serve as a guide to generations. And though his children didn't have enough time spent with their father, his legacy is more than anything they could have in this world.