Philippines, 2001 — military coup attempt
Event Summary
The dataset records an event coded as an attempted military coup in the Philippines on 29 April to 1 May 2001, the episode known as EDSA III, when supporters of the ousted president Joseph Estrada, backed by sympathetic elements in the military and police, attempted to storm the presidential palace and topple President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Arroyo had come to power in January 2001 through the EDSA II uprising that drove Estrada from office amid corruption charges, and Estrada's arrest on 25 April 2001 enraged his large base among the urban poor. Tens of thousands of his supporters massed at the EDSA shrine and then, in the early hours of 1 May, marched on Malacanang Palace in a violent bid to reinstate him, clashing with security forces in an assault that some Estrada allied officers hoped would trigger a military withdrawal of support from Arroyo.
The government declared a state of rebellion, and loyal troops and police repelled the mob after fierce fighting that left several dead. The uprising failed, Arroyo held power, and the alleged instigators, including opposition politicians and officers, were charged, though the episode revealed the deep and enduring divisions in Philippine society.
Researched Details
Researched
Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.
Sources
Editorial Note
Cross-Reference
Only one dataset carries it. One of the three reference datasets we check against carries this event; the others do not list it. That is not a contradiction — the datasets cover different periods and use different thresholds — but it means the record has had less outside corroboration.
Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:
- Cline Center id
84004292001
How the match is made is described in crossref-report.md.
Outcome and Target
Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo repelled the May 2001 EDSA III assault on Malacanang and held power.
Baseline coding: Coup attempt failed to remove the incumbent. Recorded leader fate: remained in office; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.
Baseline Dataset Citation
Baseline Source-Document Entries
CSP
Wikipedia
Xinhua News Agency
Washington Post
This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →