Benigno Aquino III, Philippine president who fought corruption and Chinese territorial claims, dies at 61 - The Washington Post

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MANILA — Former Philippine president Benigno Aquino III, a scion of pro-democracy leaders who helped topple a dictator, and a staunch campaigner in his own right against domestic corruption and China’s expansive territorial claims, died June 24 in a Manila hospital. He was 61.

The cause was renal failure as a result of diabetes, his family said in a statement. Mr. Aquino, who largely stayed out of the public eye after leaving office in 2016, had spent the last years of his life in poor health, the family said.

Mr. Aquino served from 2010 to 2016 as the Southeast Asian country’s 15th president after several years as a lawmaker in the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives. Widely known by his nickname “Noynoy,” he was the son of two democracy icons: former senator Benigno Aquino Jr. — who was assassinated upon return from exile in 1983 — and Corazon Aquino, a homemaker who rose to lead the opposition to autocratic president Ferdinand Marcos after her husband’s death.

Corazon Aquino became president after Marcos was ousted in the Philippines’ 1986 “people power” revolt, which followed a snap election in which Marcos had claimed victory thanks to massive fraud. The turbulent years of her presidency from 1986 to 1992 were marked by repeated military coup attempts. In one of them, in 1987, Mr. Aquino was shot five times, and three of his bodyguards were killed. One bullet remained lodged in his neck for the rest of his life.

After his mother’s death in 2009, Mr. Aquino parlayed his name-recognition and a wave of pro-democracy, anti-corruption sentiment to election as president. He ran on the slogan, “No corruption, no poverty,” and won in a landslide, easily beating a predecessor, discredited former president Joseph Estrada, who had been impeached on graft charges.

Mr. Aquino’s administration was credited, particularly in the early years of its term, with stabilizing the economy. Gross domestic product grew by at least 6 percent annually between 2012 and 2015.

Mr. Aquino also succeeded in getting the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a large insurgent group, to renounce violence after decades of armed conflict. Negotiations paved the way for an autonomous region in the Catholic-majority country’s south, where most of the Philippines’ Muslims live.

In international affairs, his presidency is perhaps best remembered for its firm stance on Philippine territorial rights in the South China Sea. The Aquino administration led a case before the Permanent Court of Arbitration, based in The Hague, against China’s claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, including islands close to the Philippines. The court ruled in favor of the Philippines in July 2016, after Mr. Aquino had left office. But China rejected the tribunal’s ruling, and President Rodrigo Duterte, who succeeded him, has largely avoided confronting Beijing.

Mr. Aquino’s government, however, was heavily criticized for its handling of Typhoon Haiyan, which killed thousands of Filipinos in 2013. And his popularity took a hit from a botched police operation to capture Muslim rebels in 2015 that left 44 officers dead. Analysts say that dissatisfaction with his government eventually led to the rise of the populist Duterte, a political opponent of Mr. Aquino.

“He reformed the country, but not radically,” said political analyst Antonio La Viña. “He was a modern president, but not modern enough to fix the political system.” And despite the Philippines’ growth rates, his economic stewardship “wasn’t successful in terms of equality,” La Viña said.

Vice President Leni Robredo, a member of Mr. Aquino’s Liberal Party, called him “a good friend and an honest president.” She added on Twitter: “He tried to do what was right, even when it was not popular.”

Harry Roque, a spokesman for Duterte, said in a statement on Mr. Aquino’s death: “We are grateful for his contribution and services to the country.”

Mr. Aquino was a bachelor and had no children. He is survived by four sisters: Maria Elena A. Cruz, Aurora Corazon A. Abellada, Victoria Eliza A. Dee and Kristina Bernadette Aquino.

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Benigno Aquino III, Philippine president who fought corruption and Chinese territorial claims, dies at 61 - The Washington Post
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