DR. JUAN ESCANDOR_ COMMUNITY DOCTOR VICTIM OF MARTIAL LAW

FROM VP LENNY ROBREDO'S FACEBOOK PAGE Dr. Juan Escandor worked as an oncologist and radiologist in the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in the years leading up to the declaration of Martial Law. There, he worked with urban poor communities and organized the workers of PGH. Because of his frustration with the injustice prevailing in the country, he founded the militant student organization Kabataang Makabayan. Upon the declaration of Martial Law, Escandor left PGH to go underground, volunteering his medical services in the rural communities of Cagayan Valley. The Marcos regime issued a P180,000 reward for the “NPA doctor.” Escandor was killed in 1983, at the age of 42. The military announced that he was shot dead in an armed encounter with constabulary officers, but an autopsy performed on his body told a completely different story: Bruises covered parts of his face and body. His face was full of cigarette burns. Patches of his mustache were plucked. His right eye was gouged out. Trash, plastic bags, dirty rags, and a pair of briefs were found shoved inside his skull. Brain matter was found inside his abdominal cavity. His internal organs showed he suffered from hemorrhage and hematoma, and x-ray results showed fractures in his bones.