Activists will commemorate International Day of the Worlds’ Indigenous Peoples (IPs) on Thursday, August 9, in Baguio City to call for a stop to intensified attacks, plunder of ancestral land and resources, militarization, and the criminalization of indigenous human rights defenders, In a press conference in the said city Monday, August 6, the Cordillera People’s […]
Pauwi Na
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Filipino: Wika ng Protesta tungo sa Pambansang Kaunlaran
Sinalubong ng daang-daang mga Iskolar ng Bayan sa Politeknikong Unibersidad ng Pilipinas (PUP) ang Buwan ng Wika ng isang kilos protesta.
Bitbit ng mga mag-aaral ang mga isyu ng sambayanang Pilipino. Naniniwala ang mga kabataang ito na ang problema sa wika ay isa lamang manipestasyon ng pambansang problema na kinakaharap ng mamamayang Pilipino.
Katulad ng mga iba’t ibang sektor ng lipunan, patuloy na isinasantabi at niyuyurakan ang wikang Filipino. Naglabas noong 2013 ang Commission on Higher Education (CHED) ng CHED Memorandum 20 Series of 2013 kung saan sinasaad ang pagtatanggal ng mga asignatura sa Filipino sa Kolehiyo. Ayon sa tagapagsalita ng Tanggol Wika PUP na si Rucelyn Solivenm, ang pagtatanggal sa wikang Filipino bilang isang asignatura ay pag-aalis din ng identidad ng bawat mamamayang Pilipino.
Hindi hiwalay ang problema ng mga manggagawa, magsasaka, kababaihan, katutubo at kabataan sa problema ng pambansang wika. Patuloy ang pakikibaka ng Tanggol Wika kaisa sa mga organisasyon, institusyon, kaguruan, at kabataan upang ipaglaban ang wikang Filipino at ang karapatan ng bawat mamamayang Pilipinong patuloy na dumaranas ng matinding kahirapan.
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Women’s rights group condemns persecution of Makabayan reps, supports #DefendLiza campaign
Tanggol Bayi, an association of women human rights defenders in the Philippines, condemns the political persecution mounted by the Duterte regime against the four former Makabayan representatives. We express our support for National Anti-Poverty Commission Secretary Liza Maza. We have worked with her and her office in defining the agenda for urban poor women, especially for women vendors in the informal sector who lack insurance and any form of social protection, as well as in the staunch defense of WHRDs at risk or those under attack.
NPA: 11 gov’t soldiers dead in Masbate ambush
The Jose Rapsing Command of the New People’s Army (NPA) claimed 11 government soldiers were killed in the ambush it conducted Friday, August 3, at Sitio Manga, Barangay Mactan, Cawayan town in Masbate Province. In a statement, Luz del Mar, spokesperson of the rebel army command, confirmed an earlier Philippine National Police report that three […]
The ignorance that kills
By Luis V. Teodoro Within months of his coming to power in 2016, President Rodrigo Duterte’s profanities, tirades, threats, outrageous remarks about women, human rights, heads of foreign states, and what he was actually doing, had called the attention of international media — in Japan, the United States and Europe — to what was happening […]
Rising human rights abuses in Mindanao alarm UPLM
Reports of continued repression against the tribal peoples in Mindanao has alarmed the Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in Mindanao (UPLM) as they slammed the Duterte administration “for allowing the perpetuation of these reprehensible acts”.
IN PHOTOS: Lumad ordeal in Surigao del Sur not yet over
They fled their villages to escape the threats of intensifying military presence, only to be subjected to a military cordon that worsened their condition in a temporary shelter.
On July 16, some 1,607 indigenous people from 15 communities from the towns of Lianga and San Agustin in Surigao del Sur marched for ten hours to seek refuge from military abuses.
Lumad leaders reported that soldiers who had been encamping in their communities subjected them to human rights violations, intimidation, and harassment.
The Lumad sought sanctuary in a gymnasium in Diatagon village in Lianga town, but the military blocked all entry and exit points to the evacuation area and controlled humanitarian aid coming in from various organizations.
There was no water supply, no toilet, and not enough space for everyone in the gymnasium. People had to take turns in order to sleep. The local government unit of Lianga town refused to send aid because “there was no crisis or calamity”.
The army barred non-residents to pass through the barricades, including members of the media. The Lumad also reported a series of harassment and intimidation incidents perpetuated by elements of the 75th infantry battalion of the Philippine Army while they were in the gymnasium.
Another exodus
On July 30, the internally displaced Lumad started decided to seek another shelter. Conditions inside the gymnasium in Diatagon village had become unbearable. They once again initiated a long march to Tandag City, the provincial capital.
“We will die if we will not move to another safer location. We have no choice but to walk to the capital and bring our issues to the higher government,” said tribal leader Sarry Campos.
The army prevented the indigenous people from advancing when they reached San Agustin town after nearly 10 hours of walking.
They blocked the road with anti-riot policemen, fully armed troops, military trucks, and fire trucks.
The provincial government’s crisis management committee called for a dialogue to, according to provincial officals, prevent the possible escalation of conflict should the Lumad assert in passing through the barricade.
San Agustin town chief executive Libertad Alameda offered a temporary sanctuary in Buhisan village.
During the dialogue, the tribal group MAPASU, the local government unit, and the military have agreed to several conditions including the withdrawal of a military detachment in Sitio Simowao.
However, the parties reached a deadlock after the military refused to sign the agreement.
The tribals have vowed not to return to their communities if the military will not sign the agreement and set down their encampments in tribal communities.
“If they will not sign the memorandum, there is no assurance that the army would not go back and encamp in the villages,” said Campos.
“We cannot just rely purely on their words because even signed agreements in the past were not honored by the military,” he added.
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