PRESIDENT Duterte’s tirades against the Church are said to have bred the ongoing intimidation against people of faith. This has prompted various Christian denominations and groups to gather on January 25 in Manila to denounce what they call the incessant attacks and injustices perpetrated by the Duterte administration. Human rights advocates, families of political prisoners, and families of victims of the administration’s drug war joined the gathering.
Groups of nuns intently listen to the speakers of the ‘One Voice, One Faith, One Nation’. “Tama na po ang pababanta sa taong simbahan. Kampon lang ni Satanas ang gumagawa niyan,” former Education Sec. Bro. Armin Luistro says in his speech.
Members of Gabriela Party-list and the Saint Vincent School of Theology joined a human chain in Rajah Sulayman Park to symbolize their linked calls against state-sponsored human rights violations.
Nanette Castillo, mother of Tokhang victim Aldrin, wears a placard with the picture of his son. Groups also called for the immediate release of peace consultant Rey Casambre.
Lumad groups – who were driven away from their lands and are now in Metro Manila due to the severe militarization in their areas – also prepared an intricate quilt containing their calls.
“Hangga’t walang hustisya sa ating kapaligiran, kailanman ay walang katotohanan,” Bishop-Emeritus Teodoro Bacani speaks at the ‘One Voice’ gathering.
Photos and text: Edgar Evangelista and Vince Dagami
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