Cellphone text revolution helps people power revolt

Cellphone text revolution helps people power revolt
REUTERS

MANILA, JAN 23: Philippine mobile phone network provider Smart Communications handled 70 million text messages last week, up by 55 percent from the week earlier, as people power turned up the pressure on disgraced President Joseph Estrada.

Even before last week's dramatic events which led to Estrada's ouster and the rise to power of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the Philippines was already the "texting" capital of the world, Today

newspaper said on Tuesday.

``The number of short messages daily sent out over cellphones in the country is greater than that seen by the rest of the world,'' it said.

Estrada was dumped out of office on Saturday as hundreds of thousands took to the streets. In recent weeks, the anti-Estrada campaign has been played out on radio, television and on the Internet.

But it was cellphones that best illustrated the power that technology literally put in Filipino' hands.