Filipinos bid farewell to former president Benigno Aquino

Philippine former president Benigno Aquino was laid to rest in a Manila cemetery on Saturday beside his parents.

Hundreds of mourners in black and white, some also wearing yellow - the colour associated with the Aquino family - ribbons and face masks, attended a funeral mass and burial ceremony.

Aquino, president from 2010 to 2016, died at age 61 in a Manila hospital on Thursday of kidney failure as a result of diabetes.

Aquino's remains were cremated on Thursday. Thousands queued for the public viewing in a church in his alma mater on Friday.

Filipinos lined up along roads to pay respect during the one-hour convoy of dozens of vehicles from his alma mater, Ateneo de Manila University, to the cemetery south of the capital.

The military gave a 21-gun salute and a helicopter rained down yellow flowers. At the Aquino residence at the heart of the capital, supporters left chrysanthemums, yellow bell and sunflower for the late leader.

Among those paying respects to Aquino was vice president and political ally Leni Robredo, and close friends. Most supporters were blocked at the entrance of the cemetery to prevent mass gathering and the spread of COVID-19.

Known popularly as Noynoy, Aquino rode a wave of public support to the presidency after the 2009 death of his mother, the revered "People Power" leader Corazon Aquino, who was president from 1986 to 1992.

Aquino, who led a private life after stepping down, is survived by four sisters.

President Rodrigo Duterte did not attend the funeral.