By JUSTIN UMALI
Bulatlat.com
LAGUNA – A youth activist based in Baguio City received death threats from an unknown sender, Nov. 6.
Khim Russel Abalos, spokesperson of Youth Act Now Against Tyranny Baguio-Benguet (Yanat), received from cellphone number 09350551109 this message, “Magndang [sic] umaga. 3 aktibista ang mawawala sa inyo simula ngayong araw. Magingat kayo sa ginagawa nyo [sic]. Kasama ka sa listahan ng papatumbahin namin.” (Good morning. 3 activists will go missing starting today. Be careful of what you’re doing. You’re on our list.)
In a statement, Yanat Baguio-Benguet condemned the threats, saying that “the state is hell-bent on suppressing those who are critical of its administration.”
In a tweet, Abalos lamented the threats before resolving that he will “die fighting fairly with the truth and the people’s legitimate concerns in him.”
This is not the first time Abalos was threatened through text messages. On January 31, messages sent to him implicated him as an NPA recruiter and implied knowledge of his and his family’s whereabouts.
Abalos is also the former secretary general of the UP Baguio University Student Council and a member of the Alliance of Concerned Students.
Yanat Baguio-Benguet stands in solidarity with Abalos and stressed that “the right to express one’s self and be critical of our ailing society are not grounds for us to be demonized.” “Fascism is not the solution!” the group sais
Youth Act Now Against Tyranny is a broad alliance of student councils, publications, organizations, and community based youth-organizations which aims to strengthen and awaken youth involvement for truth and social change. It was formed in 2017 in the wake of the killings of Kian de los Santos, Carl Arnaiz, Reynaldo de Guzman, and Obilo Bay-ao.
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