Estrada urges Filipinos to unite

Mon, 29 Jun 1998 | Source: AP

MANILA (AP): President-elect Joseph Estrada urged Filipinos yesterday to unite after a stormy dispute provoked by his endorsing the burial of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in a heroes' cemetery.

Estrada said he was relieved the furor over the planned July 11 burial was over, adding that Filipinos couldn't afford to be divided amid the economic challenges confronting their nation.

"Our foes are big and strong, especially when it comes to the economy. There is no reason for us to be divided," Estrada told a crowd after a thanksgiving Mass in a church in suburban San Juan, where he was mayor at the start of his political career.

Estrada angered groups led by former President Corazon Aquino by endorsing a plan to bury Marcos' remains at the Heroes Cemetery in an army camp in metropolitan Manila.

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