Ka Pepe Diokno
and the fight for human rights

This is the third part of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism’s (PCIJ) video series on Senator Jose “Pepe” Diokno in commemoration of the 90th anniversary of his birth and the 25th anniversary of his death. The third installment begins with the release of Ka Pepe Diokno from jail in 1974, and his formation of the Free Legal Assistance Group or FLAG, as his own way of fighting the Marcos dictatorship.

The group brought together the best and the brightest as well as the most passionate and patriotic of the legal profession, and led to the formation of many other human rights and civil society groups that would eventually erode the power of the Marcos regime.