First Quarter Storm

The First Quarter Storm (Filipino: Sigwa ng Unang Sangkapat), often shortened into the acronym FQS, was a period of civil unrest in the Philippines which took place during the "first quarter of the year 1970". It included a series of demonstrations, protests, and marches against the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos, mostly organized by students and supported by workers, peasants, and members of the urban poor, from January 26 to March 17, 1970. Protesters at these events raised issues related to social problems, authoritarianism, alleged election fraud, and corruption at the hand of Marcos.

Violent dispersals of various FQS protests were among the first watershed events in which large numbers of Filipino students of the 1970s were radicalized against the Marcos administration. Due to these dispersals, many students who had previously held "moderate" positions (i.e., calling for legislative reforms) became convinced that they had no choice but to call for more radical social change.

Similar watershed events would later include the February 1971 Diliman Commune; the August 1971 suspension of the writ of habeas corpus in the wake of the Plaza Miranda bombing; the September 1972 declaration of Martial Law; the 1980 murder of Macli-ing Dulag; the August 1983 assassination of Ninoy Aquino; and eventually, allegations of cheating during the 1986 Snap Elections which led to the non-violent 1986 EDSA Revolution.