Marcos children pay respect to Philippines' Aquino

MANILA, Philippines – Two children of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos paid their last respects Tuesday to former Philippine President Corazon Aquino who led a 1986 revolt that ousted their father.

The Marcos' gesture, however, was unlikely to reconcile the families' bitter rivalry.

Aquino, who died Saturday at age 76 after a yearlong battle with colon cancer, blamed Marcos for the assassination of her opposition leader husband, Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr., whose death in 1983 culminated in the "people power" uprising.

Former Rep. Imee Marcos and her younger brother Rep. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed their sympathies to several members of the Aquino family at the Manila Cathedral on Tuesday. Their youngest sibling, Irene Araneta, did not join them. A formal statement was not issued.

Aquino's brother-in-law, former Senator Agapito "Butz" Aquino, welcomed them saying the family had "no fight with the children" of Marcos. Maria Elena Cruz, Aquino's eldest daughter, shook hands with the Marcos children.

The two families have shared a long rivalry that deepened when Aquino helped end Marcos' 20-year regime. During his presidency, Marcos also jailed Aquino's husband.

Aquino's daughter Aurora Corazon Abellada told DZMM radio the family was thankful to the Marcoses "because they seemed sincere."

The late president's allies held a necrological service on Tuesday as a tribute. One of Aquino's former critics, newspaper columnist Conrad de Quiros, praised her as someone who taught "the world a thing or two about honor, courage and grace."

Tens of thousands of mourners converged on streets and overpasses for a five-hour procession on Monday, when Aquino's remains were transferred from a suburban Catholic school gym to the Manila Cathedral. She will be buried Wednesday beside her husband.