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Yet military men are generally sympathetic to Honasan's complaints, if not his actions. That will make it hard for Aquino to get tough without demoralizing the soldiers who remain the shield of her democratic government. The key may lie in taking dramatic steps -- improving conditions for the military, stepping up assaults on the guerrillas -- to allay her troops' concern, even as she disciplines the rebels. Indeed, some officers may have toed the Aquino line because of a threat to their goals. At the height of the coup attempt, Washington passed word to coup leaders that if they were successful, the U.S. would halt military aid to the Philippines, effectively paralyzing all operations against the Communists. Aquino, says U.S. Senator Richard Lugar, "has to organize her armed forces and find persons she can depend upon to probe these grievances and pull together an organization that she can depend on." Adds Lugar: "This is easier described than done."
As bullets flew past Malacanang last week, the rudely awakened President may have reflected on the difficulty of that task, and of many others she faces. Months before Aquino took seriously to politics, she said, "If I were President, I don't think I could ever sleep with all the problems in my head." Now that she has the job, it is a wonder she gets any sleep at all.