Ang Pamantasan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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 Ang Pamantasan |
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| Type | Student publication |
| Format | Broadsheet, Tabloid, Newsletter, Magazine, Book (depending on publication) |
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| Owner | Ang Pamantasan, Inc. |
| Founded | 1979 |
| Headquarters |  Intramuros, Manila, Philippines |
| Circulation | University-wide |
| ISSN | pending |
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| Website: http://angpamantasan.web1000.com | |
The Ang Pamantasan (Abbreviation: AP) is the official student publication of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, one of the Philippines' most prestigious universities.
This independent student organization was established in 1979, twelve years after the university formally opened.
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[edit] History
[edit] Early years
HASIK, the predecessor of AP, published articles that criticized the Marcos administration. In 1972, the year Martial Law was declared, HASIK and many other national and campus newspapers were closed. HASIK’s then Editor-in-Chief, Liliosa Hilao, was brutally killed allegedly by military men.
During Martial Law, several rules aiming to control the publications were set. On October 1978, the University Committee on School Publications (UCSP) was created. Its job was to censor every issue of the student publication.
In 1979, the student publication’s name was changed to its present name. But even under a new name, the publication suffered the same old problems.
During the first decade of AP, its staffers fought for complete independence through fiscal autonomy and continued to battle censorship from the UCSP. In 1988, AP intensified its call for fiscal autonomy. The AP staff believed that the publisher of AP is the students and the administration should have no control over it.
[edit] The 1990s
In May 10, 1991, fiscal autonomy was granted to AP by Board of Regents (BOR) Resolution No. 1462. This allowed the publication to directly collect fees from the students.
On August 6 of the following year, the AP staff, with George T. Amurao as Editor-in-Chief, registered the publication as Ang Pamantasan, Inc. in the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). AP became a non-stock, non-profit corporation and an independent entity inside PLM.
Before the second semester of 1992 began, a memorandum circular, dated October 22, was released, making the AP fee a non-prerequisite to enrollment. This became a major concern for the AP staff as it posed the possibility of having low collection turnouts. Several students, headed by AP Editor-in-Chief Ma. Cecilia Leaño and Supreme Student Council (SSC) President Mayonello Yanilla, protested by conducting a rally.
On July 30, 1993, the office of the President issued Administrative Order No. 14, stating the formation of an Ad Hoc Committee, which was tasked to conduct an examination for new staffers of AP. This was made without consultation with the current staffers of AP. Because of this, several AP staffers and supporters picketed at the PLM gate. This resulted to a 20-day preventive suspension of seven AP staffers and the issue was even brought to court.
Meanwhile, as the results of the AP examinations conducted by the administration were released, Jose Gabriel Mabutas was chosen as the new Chief Editor. During that time, two APs existed – the AP Inc. and the AP that was recently formed and was led by Mabutas. The former tagged the latter as the "AP Bogus", which was able to publish only one issue. A few months later, PLM President Benjamin G. Tayabas suspended the collection of the publication fee because of internal problems.
On November 10, 1994, the AP Inc. was closed down. For a period of two years, AP was non-operational. The student publication was only revived on the latter part of the year 1996 when Dr. Versailey dela Cruz handled the university presidency. Jennifer Arceo was the first Editor-in-Chief of the revived AP.
In 1997, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim imposed the zero collection policy for the non-paying students of PLM. AP’s fund was subsidized by the city government.
When Lito Atienza won the elections and became the mayor of Manila, Lim’s zero collection policy was not sustained and AP was allowed to collect from the non-paying students again.
[edit] The twenty first century
In 2000, the request for the increase in the publication fee was approved by the Board of Regents. The AP fee was hiked from 17 to 30 pesos. During this time, AP who was then led by Chief Editor Isagani Abunda established open communication with the university administration. Despite of this, AP remained critical on several issues, particularly anomalies involving the previous administration.
On February 12, 2002, the AP staffers and some SSC officers showed opposition to the proposed zero collection policy of a student council president candidate Ryan Ponce. This mass action led to a three-day suspension of around 15 students who participated in the said rally.
Before the enrolment for the first semester of 2003, AP was informed that the collection of its fees was placed at the last step of enrolment. Dr. Ester D. Jimenez, the then head of the Office of the University Registrar, explained that it was done because the collection of the AP and the SSC fees is not the responsibility of the university administration.
Under Ma. Cecilia D. Villarosa, AP published articles criticizing the administration for its allegedly unfair policies, misuse of funds and harassment on students, among others. These critical write-ups prompted some university officials to file complaints against AP before the students’ affairs office.
The AP staffers again held a rally, wherein all participants wore black. That day was called "Black Saturday".
A month later, AP released Issue, a magazine which contained investigative reports on several campus issues. Included in the magazine was the controversial article entitled "The Big Five", which published the personal accounts, assets and liabilities of the five top university officials.
Because of this article, Dr. Virginia N. Santos, vice president for academic affairs, and Jimenez, who was also the head of the office of admissions, filed new complaints against AP.
Days before graduation of the year 2004, the College of Mass Communication dean requested to delete the names of AP editors Villarosa and Celeste J. Boniquit from the list of the graduating students, saying that they failed to comply with the academic requirements for graduation. The council also revoked the degree of Associate Editor Rose Belen M. Manaog. The dismissal was ordered on June 11 and the other staff members were all suspended.
Villarosa and others appealed to other student publications and to the national media. News regarding the expulsion and suspension of the AP writers was published in some newspapers and was able to get some attention from the broadcast media.
The administration immediately answered and denied the validity of AP staffers’ complaints. It released its statement and was published in several newspapers. With that, the issue cooled down.
On June 11, 2004, the AP office was opened without the presence of any of the staff members. According to the administration, it was opened only for safety and security purposes. The doorknob was allegedly replaced and the keys were turned over to the university security group.
A few days later, AP published a special issue that answered all accusations by the administration against them. The issue, which was tabloid-sized, had a big, catchy banner on the front page. The banner reads "Martial Law", obviously implying that there is no more press freedom in PLM.
On July 24, a few weeks after the remaining AP writers were suspended, the Student Publications Committee (SPC) conducted a competitive examination for aspiring AP writers.
Those who passed the written exam and a panel interview constituted the new AP editorial board. Jimboie D. Cordova was named editor in chief but after several months, he resigned.
The student writers who composed the new AP editorial staff were tagged as "administration puppets" by a number of students. These students, who were used to the hard-hitting style of the former AP writers, doubted the integrity and writing style of the new staff members. And while previous AP writers only had problems regarding their relationship with the university administration, the new ones had to bare with the problems brought by distrust, both on the part of the administration and of the students. The staff had difficulty in dealing with university officials and employees apparently because of the latter’s bad impressions on AP considering its recent clash with the administration. On the other hand, students perceive the new staffers as pro-administration because it was the SPC who administered the examination. Recently though, AP has been getting support from the younger student population (composed of freshmen and sophomore students).
Meanwhile, in January 2005, the Manila Regional Trial Court ordered that the degree in mass communication be given to expelled AP editors Villarosa, Boniquit and Manaog.
[edit] Prizes
AP sponsors "Ang Pamantasan Gintong Panitik," which is an annual literary contest. It began on October 26, 1998 during the incumbency of Rhia Diomampo as Editor-in-Chief of AP, with the theme, "Living, Thriving and Dying in Manila: Circa '90" or "Iba't ibang Mukha ng Maynila: Sirka '90." The contest aims to breathe a life of awareness among PLM students towards a variety of issues at the same time nourish them with a sense of resposibility to participate in the Philippine society through their imaginative writings. It has different categories in both English and Filipino such as, short story/maikling kuwento, poem/tula, and essay/sanaysay. The winners are chosen by the faculty of PLM and other universities, and distinguished writers, who are mostly Carlos Palanca Awardees.
[edit] References
[edit] Further reading
- Websites
- Official University Website
- . / The Official Website of the Ang Pamantasan
- Ang Pamantasan
- Canivel, Jose Perseus G. & Villarosa, Maria Cecilia D. "Nurturing the seeds of Literature." Ang Pamantasan, Vol. XXII, No. 5. November 05, 2001.
- The Philippine Collegian
- Abella, Jerrie. Chasing Liberties: Imprinting democratic rights in student publications. The Philippine Collegian Internet edition. December 1, 2006.
[edit] Related links
- Manila Times Internet Edition: PLM expels editors, suspends staff of university newspaper
- Manila Times Internet Edition: Statements of facts relative to the erroneous claims of the "Ang Pamantasan"
- The Print Media: A Tradition of Freedom
- Young, Illustrious Filipinos Fell Then - And Still Fall Now
- Filipino women are not scared of another dictatorship
[edit] External links
- PLM Official University website
- PLM Official Student Publication website
- PLM Students and Alumni website
- PLM Alumni Exchange website
- PLM Online Community Forum site
- PLM Geocities site
- PLM College of Engineering and Technology Official website
- Association of South East Asian Institutes of Learning
