Retired Navy Capt. Danilo Vizmanos is dead

A friend working at Bayan texted me hours ago with grim news: Retired Navy Capt. Danilo P. Vizmanos has died last night.

His remains lie in state at the Sacred Heart Church in Kamagong, Makati City.

Ka Dan was a fixture in national democratic rallies eversince he turned his back on his military career and chose to work directly with the people he was sworn to serve.

He became president of Bayan, chair of SELDA, and convenor of various coalitions critical of US military presence in the Philippines.

I knew Ka Dan as a good leader and propagandist. He would call the Bayan office to dictate his statements on various issues so we may encode them and print them in time for press conferences. He writes rather well, so good that he was able to author two books and published his martial law diary.

Last month, Bayan organized a tribute to him which I was able attend. Ka Dan came and was surprised by the cot especially prepared for him so he could comfortably watch the program. He wept like a child and admitted in his remarks that it was the first time he cried in public. He called on those who attended the event to carry on the fight and to look beyond the ouster of President Arroyo because the struggle for meaningful change is bigger than Arroyo or all the presidents combined. That was the last time I saw Ka Dan.

We will dearly miss Ka Dan.