Antonio Molina, the terminally ill political prisoner who asked for “compassionate release” from a local court, has died Thursday night, November 18 in a Puerto Princesa City hospital. He was 67.
Political prisoners support group Kapatid announced Molina was brought to the Ospital ng Palawan yesterday after suffering from cardiac arrest. He died a few minutes after 10 pm, the group said.
Kapatid added Molina was the sixth political prisoner to die during the pandemic. There is no report if he was tested for COVID-19 despite the extreme congestion of the city jail, it said.
Human rights group Karapatan said Molina is the 11th political detainee to die under the Rodrigo Duterte administration.
Faith-based group Promotion of Church Peoples’ Response (PCPR) also announced Molina’s death in a separate statement.
“With deep sadness, we bid farewell to Antonio Molina who died this evening November 18, 2021 after suffering months of excruciating pain from terminal cancer while in prison,” the PCPR said.
Molina was arrested on Oct. 4, 2019 in Palawan together with six staffers of the human rights group Karapatan. They were charged with illegal possession of firearms and explosives the Philippine National Police usually files against activists and alleged communists.
Molina was diagnosed with malignant stomach cancer (abdominal sarcoma) last March 24.
This led his family, lawyers and human rights groups to petition the government to grant him a “compassionate release” to allow him continued hospitalization and medical care.
But the motions filed by human rights lawyers were first denied by the Regional Trial Court Branch 51 of Puerto Princesa in Palawan last October 15.
“We had been asking the government for his compassionate release since the day that doctors gave him six months to live because of poor prognosis due to extreme disease,” Kapatid spokesperson Fides Lim said.
“We also appealed to the court and prison officials to transfer Molina to a hospital where he could receive intensive care. This was blocked by the prison warden who even denied that he was bedridden. It was too late when the Jail Inspector reversed their position on November 15 and asked the court to act on Molina’s motion for release on recognizance on humanitarian grounds,” Lim added.
Atty Ma. Sol Taule, one of Molina’s lawyers said she received a call Thursday night from his doctors asking permission to intubate the political detainee.
“I informed them of his family’s wish for his life to be extended to allow them to travel to Puerto Princesa to say their final goodbyes,” the lawyer said in Filipino.
“Our sadness and regret are profound for the delayed Release on Recognizance motion we filed before the court that would have allowed his family to take care of him in his final days,” Taule said, adding Molina was yet another victim of the government’s trumped up charges against activists.
Kapatid for its part asked the Commission on Human Rights to conduct an independent investigation into the responsibility and liability of prison officials as well as the accountability of a “callous” court in Molina’s death.
“[W]e ask the (CHR) to lead an independent investigation into his death, particularly the negligence of prison officials, even as we ask the court to reexamine itself and be held accountable for its callous decision-making that effectively served as his death warrant,” Lim said.
Last October, Kapatid asked why “a bedridden old man, completely disabled and incapable of any self-care, cannot benefit from the equity of the law that was used in principle to grant bail for jailed and convicted politicians accused of nonbailable high crimes.”
“The justice system failed Antonio Molina because of double standard and selective application. The penal system further punished him without mercy, deaf to his cries for help. We express our sincerest condolences to his bereaved family,” Lim said.
Taule said Molina was a gentle elderly person who always smiled and looked after his fellow prisoners even as he suffered excruciating pain because of illness.
“His indigenous people colleagues and fellow political detainees Awing and Bener were proud that they learned to read and write because of Molina’s tutelage.
The PCPR also said Molina endured great injustice at the hands of his accusers.
“[B]ut he is victorious. He has finished the race. He has fought the good fight,” the group said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/tatay.jpg8511080Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-19 12:14:332021-11-19 14:37:11Terminally ill political detainee dies waiting for ‘compassionate release’
Farmers’ organization Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) reported the abduction of a peasant and indigenous peoples organizer in Pampanga province on Saturday, November 6.
Based on initial reports it gathered, the KMP said long-time Central Luzon peasant organizer Steve Abua, 34 years old, was last seen in Barangay Sta. Cruz, Lubao town.
Abua’s wife received messages from his phone reportedly sent by his abductors and showing photos of the activist “visibly in distress” last Saturday, the group said.
“After an exchange of messages, the abductors directed Abua’s family to add a Facebook Messenger account and, through that, Mrs. Abua was able to see her husband via video call, the KMP said.
Mrs. Abua reportedly saw Steve wearing a white shirt, jeans, and a bonnet and sitting at the bottom bunk of a double deck bed.
“He had blindfolds, and cover on his mouth to prevent him from speaking,” the KMP alert said.
The KMP added that the abductors threatened Abua’s wife not to tell anyone outside of the family about Steve’s plight or she will not be able to see her husband anymore.
They also threatened that they could easily kill Steve if Mrs. Abua would not abide by their conditions, the group added.
Before working as a full-time peasant organizer in Central Luzon, Abua was a University of the Philippines-Diliman student leader who graduated with honors with a BS Statistics degree.
As a student leader, Abua was councilor of the UP School of Statistics Student Council and a member of the League of Filipino Students-UP Diliman.
A friend wrote on Facebook that Abua was a tireless student organizer who loves to play the guitar at UP Diliman’s Vinzon’s Hall and Sunken Garden.
He decided to become a full time activist and organizer after the 2004 Hacienda Luisita Massacre, also in Central Luzon.
Abua’s family believes that the perpetrators are state forces as the abductors kept repeating that the government just wants to give Abua a chance to turn a new leaf in life or “magbagong buhay,” the KMP said.
“We condemn this latest attack against peasant organizer and human rights defender Steve Abua. Surface Abua now and let him return safely to his family,” KMP leader Danilo Ramos said.
“We are appealing to any witnesses to give any information that could lead to the whereabouts of Steve Abua. It is likely that Abua was abducted to force him to surrender and cooperate with government agents from the NTF-ELCAC,” Ramos said.
The Abua family, through KARAPATAN-Central Luzon, already sought assistance from the Commission on Human Rights to locate the missing activist. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/steve-1.jpg565960Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-08 17:05:352021-11-08 20:00:24KMP demands the surfacing of missing Central Luzon activist, accuses gov't forces of abducting organizer
(The author has been covering the peace process between the NDFP and the GRP and has interviewed Jorge ‘Ka Oris’ Madlos on several occasions. Here is the journalist’s look-back on one of his most respected sources.)
He was inside a swidden hut that Christmas night I first laid eyes on Mindanao’s legendary rebel leader. An electric bulb was casting a wan glow on a makeshift porch and Jorge Madlos was wearing a stubby flashlight on his forehead as he furiously tapped on his laptop, seemingly unaware of the frenzied atmosphere around him. It was the eve of the Communist Party of the Philippines’s (CPP) 42nd founding anniversary and the then National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP)-Mindanao spokesperson was busy polishing the statement he was to issue the next day.
His comrades directed us to a nearby creek to wash up, noticing our pants and shoes were caked with drying mud, victims of several spills on rice paddies and mud puddles on the way to the New People’s Army (NPA) encampment on Mt. Diwata’s foothills. Finding our way back to his hut, Madlos, more famous as Ka Oris, was done typing, beaming a toothy smile and waiting to finally welcome the new arrivals from the city.
“Maligayang pagdating. Salamat sa pagpunta. Kumusta ang biyahe?” Oris asked, eager to hear what we had to say in return. (Welcome. Thank you for coming. How was your trip?) His interest was understandable; we have been told he had a direct hand in organizing the trips. He had done so in the many decades that he welcomed to NPA camps journalists and many other kinds of visitors.
He invited us to dinner, a surprisingly sumptuous fare of adobo and lechon on heaps of piping hot fragrant mountain rice. “Are these the ones being cooked in the barrios we passed by?” we asked. “No. What the masses are cooking tonight will be brought to the celebrations tomorrow. December 26 is their real holiday,” he said. “These adobo and lechon are gifts from local politicians,” he added, laughing. Oris however had fish stew, a healthier meal to manage his urination problems brought about by a spine infection.
It was getting late and Oris held back on asking the many questions he was also known for. Journalists from all over trooped to where they could get hold of him, but he was equally famous for quizzing them in turn. “Baka pagod na kayo. Maaga tayo bukas. Doon sa may mangga ang pwesto niyo,” he said, pointing to where our tents were being put up. (You may already be tired. We have an early day tomorrow. Your tents are being put up under that mango tree.)
We almost never got the chance to have Oris to ourselves again the next day. Along with the thousands of attendees who descended on an open field were Mindanaoan reporters and national and international journalists there to cover the biggest story of the day and interview one of the country’s media darlings. Even journalists who were known to be critical of the communists were invited and welcomed.
During the celebrations, we witnessed firsthand how Oris was one of the journalists’ most beloved sources, especially by Mindanaoan reporters. He had ordered special spots for us to be able to take good photos of the NPA parade. He issued us press passes and badges that were proudly worn the entire day. He made the press conference part of the day long celebrations, fielding the seemingly never-ending stream of questions with dashes of wry humor. He repeatedly thanked the journalists who came, easily identifying which parts of Mindanao or elsewhere in the world they were from or writing for. He handed out “certificates of attendance,” accepted with much jollity and, I suspect, are being kept to this day. A “class picture” with the journalists capped our day, with Oris at the center, looking much like a grandfatherly school principal among wards. I very much doubt any Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) general went as famously with the journalists as the diminutive guerilla did.
Hard-nosed journalists emerge satisfied with every interview session with Oris. He was obviously naturally intelligent, conversant in at least four languages. Questions designed to trap him were deftly turned around, such as, “You have been waging this war for decades, yet you have failed to win,” to which Oris replied, “The much stronger government and imperialists could not defeat us either.” A correspondent of an international news wire agency asked, “Will it not be more difficult for the movement at this time, given that President Aquino is popular?” “He is not popular in our areas of control,” was Oris’ riposte.
The AFP was furious at the brazenness of the CPP celebrations that day that, despite the existence of ceasefire declarations, it put up checkpoints on the roads leading out of the area to harass attendees on their way home. The local Philippine Army (PA) battalion commander was in a towering rage, sources said, especially when a politician’s mindless aide delivered his donation of lechon to the PA camp, instead of the intended NPA camp. “Mabuhi ang CPP! Mabuhi ang NPA!” the mayor’s written message on the lechon carton reportedly read.
At about three in the afternoon and while the celebrations were still on full blast, Oris granted us some time to ask him about the NDFP’s peace negotiations with the Benigno Aquino government. With the 15-minute interview over, he suggested we hitch a ride with other civilian attendees out of the area later that afternoon. “There will be other opportunities for us to talk. It is more important that you get home safe. Thank you for spending today with your friendly NPA,” he jestingly said. There, tired and preoccupied with everyone’s safety, Oris’ famous brand of humor sent us on our way home.
It took us another four years to get another chance to cover Ka Oris in a CPP anniversary celebration. This time, the AFP was more vociferous in preventing the thousands from attending CPP’s 46th anniversary celebrations. Even with local politicians and a congressman telling government soldiers that the mutual rebel and government-declared ceasefires allowed for another open CPP celebration, they delayed the attendees by hours. Revelations that the occasion would even be attended by a Malacanan Palace emissary for peace negotiations consultations were ignored. Many other journalists were also delayed.
As in 2011, I and some colleagues arrived at the venue on Christmas night precisely to avoid the hassle of passing through AFP checkpoints in broad daylight when they are known to be braver. We also hoped to spend more time with Oris alone before the frenzy sets in. When we arrived however, he was already busy welcoming the throng arriving with us, including a group of Catholic nuns. What he did not fail in doing was to ask how our trip was, insisting that we grab a bite and ensuring we have a place to sleep.
The rumpus the government soldiers caused prevented Oris from giving us time for an exclusive interview in the morning. What he did was to give a presser for the many journalists who arrived and answer all our questions as per usual. He also gave copies of the statement he read in the delayed program. Later, he managed to give Kodao an on-cam interview. When it was time for goodbyes, he made sure we would be safe in our travels, as was his wont.
Sometime in between those two coverage, we received a letter from Oris, saying it is time for that exclusive no-time-limit interview. I thought it would be in the same type of area and I packed lightly. It turned out that the venue was at a major NPA camp up high in the mountains. From one of the island’s major cities, it took me and my guide the entire day to travel by bus to a fairly large central Mindanao town and by motorcycle up more and taller mountains. When we ran out of roads and began seeing NPA fighters by the roadside, I thought we’ve reached our destination. I was then told we were just halfway up. What followed was a night-time climb up steep and narrow mountain trails, slogging through swamps and crossing burbling creeks, aided only by small flashlights. We reached camp at near two o’clock in the morning and there was Oris, waiting for us while boiling water to disinfect his urinary drainage bags (urobags).
“You made it!” he beamed, offering us the unique Mindanao NPA handshake. “How was your trip?” he asked, this time with a guffaw, seeing I was near collapse, tethering on my walking stick. Again, beside him, also beaming, was Alvin Luque, alias Ka Joaquin Jacinto, the activist who succeeded Oris as NDFP-Mindanao spokesperson. (Oris and Luque, both ill at the time of their respective deaths, were killed by government soldiers less than a year apart.)
The next morning, Oris gave us a tour of the camp where huge tents housed activists on week-long educational discussions. Other tents served as offices, kitchens and dining halls. All around were individual huts for camp regulars. No, there were no huts or tents that served as armory. He then invited us to conduct the interview, “Before the noisy insects start their concert.”
But the ever-curious Oris wanted something from us in return. He asked young-looking NPA fighters to observe as we set up our equipment. After the interview came his string of questions on which cameras, tripod, microphones, lights and other equipment would best survive their environment. He encouraged his comrades to ask questions on camera panning, tilting and tracking as well as visual composition he obviously already read up on. Months later, the rebels would be uploading videos of Oris issuing statements online.
It was brutally cold on our second night in the mountaintop NPA camp and I began shivering as soon as I tried to go to sleep. I wore all my shirts underneath my thin jacket to no avail. It did not help that my sleeping station was a hammock fashioned from rice sacks under a plastic sheet (tarapal). Past midnight, I felt hands lifting my malong and putting a soda bottle filled with warm water between my legs. It was Oris. Noticing I was woken, he whispered; “I can hear you shivering. This will warm you up.” It indeed did and I slept restfully until morning.
It was time for us to go back home the next day and we left with another special Oris quip: “You are welcome for the honor of visiting another NPA camp,” he said, his eyes twinkling.
It turned out that those were my only chances to personally interview Jorge Madlos. There have been two other CPP anniversaries I covered in Mindanao since. One was in Surigao del Norte 2015 and the biggest yet in Davao City in 2016 when even several Rodrigo Duterte government Cabinet members were in attendance. We were informed that Oris may attend both occasions, but the AFP was even more determined to get him, ongoing peace negotiations notwithstanding. He stayed out.
On October 29, 2021, the AFP killed the 73-year old icon of the revolution in the Philippines. His wife Maria Malaya said Oris was unarmed and was on his way to a medical treatment with an aide when waylaid by the soldiers. Possibly in spite, government soldiers cremated his remains a few days later without giving his family the chance to view his remains one last time. In a twisted way, this could be understood as their way of getting back at Oris even more for eluding them for more than five decades.
Jorge Madlos, Mindanao’s most successful rebel leader and one the Philippines’ most legendary communist cadres, is physically gone. But it would have been nice for me to meet him one last time and field the one question I had long wanted to ask: Did the warm water bottle come from his urobag disinfection ritual? #
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/oris3.jpg567960Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-04 17:30:182021-11-05 15:48:13One last question I wanted to ask Jorge ‘Ka Oris’ Madlos
Government troops have cremated Jorge Madlos’ remains and the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) is furious.
Reacting to reports that the slain rebel leader’s remains were cremated, CPP chief information officer Marco Valbuena said in a statement that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is trying to get away with murder.
“The AFP’s lies to cover up their murder of Ka Oris (Madlos) and Ka Pika (his aide Eighfel Dela Peña) just continue to pile up. They are trying to get away with murder by burning all evidence, when they had Ka Oris’ remains cremated with dispatch, on the pretext of Covid-19 protocols,” Valbuena said.
“They did not even have the human decency to wait for the family to view his remains for the last time,” he added.
A Rappler report said that Philippine Army 4th Infantry Division commander Major General Romeo Brawner Jr., announced on Wednesday, November 3, that the swab test performed on Madlos showed he was COVID-19 positive and his remains were turned over to the town government of Impasug-ong, Bukidnon.
Brawner said the town’s COVID-19 task force took Madlos to the Divine Shepherd Crematorium in Cagayan de Oro City for cremation and returned the ashes back to Impasug-ong.
Brawner reportedly said it would be up to the Impasug-ong town government to decide to whom the urn would be given.
Rappler’s report added that younger brother Rito was on his way to Bukidnon to collect the ashes.
The CPP however questioned the move, asking who gave the AFP the right to decide to cremate Madlos’s remains?
“If they wanted to follow protocols, then Ka Oris’ remains could (and should) have been buried in Impasug-ong, especially since there are no cremation facilities in Bukidnon,” Valbuena said.
The CPP spokesperson also noted that Department of Health COVID-19 protocols do not provide cremation as the only option for disposing of remains.
“This further reinforces our view that the AFP is covering-up their crime,” Valbuena said.
Valbuena added that by unilaterally having Madlos’ remains cremated, the AFP has also eliminated all chances of clearing their (military’s) name.
Madlos and Dela Peña were reportedly on board a motorcycle from Impasug-ong on their way to a medical treatment session when killed by 4thID troopers.
The NPA spokesperson is publicly known to be suffering from renal failure for years.
In separate statements, the CPP and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines-North East Mindanao Region alleged Madlos was waylaid when he is unarmed and was in no condition to fight on Friday, October 29.
Valbuena said that even if Madlos was indeed COVID-19 infected, the military should not have feared having independent pathologists perform an autopsy.
He noted that the same tactic was used on fallen rebel leader Kerima Tariman’s remains in Negros Island that the military agreed to give back to her family only after being cremated.
“Indeed, cremation has become part of the AFP’s protocol to hide their crimes and prop up a false image of respecting human rights,” Valbuena said.
The tactic violates cultural sensitivities, Valbuena said, adding in a separate statement that the AFP “set aside honor in facing an adversary.”
“In waging war, it is natural to win some and lose some. But there are rules that govern war that humanity have established in the course of civilization. Ka Oris, himself, did not preclude himself getting killed in battle,” Valbuena explained.
Madlos was erstwhile NDFP-Mindanao spokesperson before becoming spokesperson of the New People’s Army’s national operational command in 2016.
In its second national congress in the same year, the CPP elected him as a member of its Central Committee, its Political Bureau, and its Executive Committee.
The CPP congress also tasked Madlos to be among the leading cadres in the CPP’s Military Commission and its Mindanao Commission.
He was also assigned as a consultant of the NDFP in peace negotiations.
Madlos is the most senior CPP cadre to die at the hands of the AFP after fellow CPP Central Committee, Political Bureau and Executive Committee stalwart Julius Giron who died in a military raid in Baguio City last March 13. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
A court in Palawan denied the motion for the “compassionate release” of a political prisoner terminally ill with stomach cancer, a human rights group reported.
Branch 51 of the Puerto Princesa Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Palawan denied last October 15 the omnibus motion for the release of Antonio Molina who was diagnosed with abdominal sarcoma, political detainees support group Kapatid said.
Kapatid added that Molina’s doctors said he may only have six months to live because of “poor prognosis due to extreme disease based on CT (computer tomography) scan.”
A jailed member of the Katipunan ng Samahang Magbubukid sa Timog Katagalugan (KASAMA-TK), Molina was arrested with six others at a police checkpoint in Puerto Princesa City on October 4, 2019.
The seven are accused of illegal possession of firearms and explosives, a standard non-bailable charge against arrested activists and suspected New People’s Army supporters.
Kapatid reported the court also denied Molina’s appeal to release the 30,000 pesos taken from him when he was arrested, which his counsels from the Public Interest Law Center said could be used for mounting medical expenses.
The RTC only granted Molina’s motion to be treated by an herbalist to help ease his severe pain, Kapatid added.
In December 2020, Karapatan Southern Tagalog said Molina’s family has appealed for medical help as his lymph nodes have also swollen as large as melons.
“He is already old and sick. Even before his illegal arrest with his co-accused, collectively known as Palawan7, Antonio has been suffering from swollen lymph nodes and severe pain when urinating due to hypertension and kidney problems,” Karapatan said.
In an interview with Palawan News, Puerto Princesa City Jail Senior Insp. Irene Gaspar denied claims that Molina had been bed ridden.
Gaspar said Molina is “regularly permitted by the court” to undergo checkups and to walk around the jail facility.
Gaspar added that Molina had been taken to doctors whenever there are court orders.
Kapatid said the Court’s denial of Molina’s release bid on humanitarian grounds is “judicial pandemic of double standard and selective justice against the poor” while the rich and powerful are treated with compassion and allowed bail.
“It should bother everyone but it doesn’t bother the court why a bedridden old man, completely disabled and incapable of any self-care, cannot benefit from the equity of the law that was used in principle to grant bail for jailed and convicted politicians accused of non-bailable high crimes,” said Kapatid spokesperson Fides Lim.
“Do (former First Lady) Imelda (Marcos), (former Senate President Juan Ponce) Enrile, former President Gloria (Macapagal-Arroyo), (former Senator) Jinggoy Estrada, (Senator) Bong Revilla have more rights and are more equal than others?” Lim asked.
Kapatid added that during his hospitalization last July, the government refused to pay for the recommended CT scan of Molina’s leg and treatment of possible blood clot “because of lack of funds.” Lim said.
“We hope this is not a repeat of how the Supreme Court failed thousands of elderly and sick prisoners in 2020 who asked for temporary liberty because of the threats of the deadly COVID-19. If the Supreme Court and the Sandiganbayan were able to consider the age and health condition of Enrile and Imelda as a reason to grant bail, the RTC should likewise grant Molina the chance to spend the last days of his life outside prison in the care of his family,” Lim said.
“As the law does not provide an explicit recourse, the RTC should exercise compassionate intervention and equity jurisdiction. We appeal to the court’s better judgment to review its decision,” Lim appealed. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/molina.jpg518723Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-10-25 15:36:432021-10-25 15:43:12Rights group raps court refusal to release terminally ill political prisoner
Women’s rights activist Reina Mae Nasino was a month into her pregnancy when arrested by Manila’s police on suspected trumped-up charges. She endured a difficult pregnancy in one of the world’s most crowded prisons and gave birth to Baby River Emmanuel while in detention. Efforts to allow mother and child to spend more time together failed, the Philippine government justifying their early separation to the lack of infant care facilities inside prisons. Denied care from her mother, Baby River died at only three months old.
River of Tears and Rage is film culled from Kodao Productions’ Facebook Live coverage of Baby River’s wake and burial. Amid a raging coronavirus pandemic, a dead three month-old infant became a symbol of political repression by a regime denounced worldwide for its crimes against the people.
Director’s Statement:
Alternative media outfit Kodao Productions has extensively reported on many cases of activists arrested on trumped up charges of possessing illegal guns and explosives. Reina Mae Nasino was one such case. She was pregnant when arrested and was forced to continue her pregnancy inside the country’s notoriously overcrowded prisons. She gave birth while in detention and was forcibly separated from her infant child very early. Due to lack of maternal care, the baby got sick and died at only three months old.
Kodao produced comprehensive reports on the drama that transpired during the baby’s wake and chaotic burial. Its live report generated the most number of views and reactions from a shocked nation as fully-armed police and jail guards went against deeply-held Filipino values of respect for the dead and burial traditions.
This film puts together the most dramatic events during a three-month old baby’s wake and burial, using smart phones, consumer cameras and Facebook Live footages. It also includes real time comments from viewers, a great majority of whom expressed outrage at the government’s merciless show of might against its people.
Poster of the film River of Tears and Rage.
The Director:
Maricon “Conz” Montajes is a video editor, filmmaker and a former political prisoner. After being incarcerated for seven years, she resumed her studies and recently graduated Cum Laude from the University of the Philippines Film Institute with a BA Film degree. She was a three-year scholar of the Office of the Initiatives for the Culture and the Arts UP Diliman Visual Arts and Cultural Studies Scholarship Program (OICA UPD-VACSSP) as well as a university scholar. She is the video designer for Huni at Pakpak, a stage play for the CCP’S Festival of Women’ s Plays 2020. She is also the video editor and director of Salugpongan and Sining Sandata, which both won 1st prizes in the 1st UP PAG-AALAY webXHIBITION & FESTIVAL. Her recent work, Sanib Lakas, also won Top 2 Judges’ Choice in Year 2 of CNN Reel Filipina A Digital Shorts Competition (2021). She is a videographer and photographer for Kodao Productions, an alternative media outfit based in the Philippines, and also part of the film collective Sine Sanyata.
The Production:
River of Tears and Rage is a 26-minute video-documentary that started from a coverage of the crackdown against activist groups by the Rodrigo Duterte administration of the Philippine government, including that of Reina Mae Nasino and, by grievous extension, her three-month old infant.
As the first anniversary of the baby’s birth drew near, Kodao Productions decided to gather its actual video footage of the wake and burial, along with other materials from activist organizations and other alternative media outfits. The film is thus produced from these materials, central of which is the Facebook Live footage that gripped Filipino netizens that fateful day.
The film is a simple retelling of those events. With the exception of the sound designer, its production team is virtually the same coverage team that covered the wake and the burial.
As in most other small, independent and alternative multi-media outfits throughout the world, the production team members are skilled and versed in various disciplines that allow them to produce several kinds of outputs in several platforms.
Severely limited in yet another lockdown due to an outbreak of record numbers of new coronavirus cases, production meetings during the production of this film was conducted online.
About the producer:
Kodao has received awards and citations from the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas, Catholic Mass Media Awards, Pandayang Lino Brocka, Titus Brandsma Awards, Gawad Agong, and Gawad Urian for its film and radio productions. It celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.
From Kodao’s inception until his death last month, National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera served as chairperson of its Board of Directors. This film is dedicated to him. #
(The film’s online premiere today, October 16, is the anniversary of Baby River’s burial. The premiere is in partnership with Karapatan Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights, Kapatid, Promotion of Church People’s Response, Gabriela USA and Malaya Movement USA.)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/poster-river-2-scaled.jpg25601792Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-10-16 09:13:042021-10-16 09:22:02FILM: RIVER OF TEARS AND RAGE
Urban poor group Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) said its assassinated secretary general Carlito Badion had been given justice with the reported death of one of his alleged assassins.
This was the group’s reaction to a report that one of Badion’s alleged killers, Jojo “Pekulo” Lucero, had recently been punished with death by the New People’s Army (NPA) last June 25 in Ormoc City.
“What we have seen through the punishment done by the NPA is that Filipinos are seeking alternative methods for justice as the government continues to fail them. Kadamay supports all oppressed sectors in their search for justice and accountability,” the group said.
Badion, long-serving Kadamay secretary general, was tortured and murdered in his home city of Ormoc in Leyte in May 28, 2020.
Badion defended urban poor communities from violent demolitions and was known critic of substandard and dangerous government relocation sites.
He had been a repeated victim of red-tagging by government security forces until his death.
In an announcement through the underground Eastern Visayas newspaper Larab last October 2, the NPA said it conducted investigations and found Lucero guilty of being one of Badion’s assassins.
The decision was reached by a “people’s court” and was carried out by the NPA, the Larab report said.
The NPA said Lucero also took Badion’s laptop computer, mobile phone and money after the urban poor leader was killed.
“Sa isinagawang imbestigasyon sa kaso, napatunayang nasa ilalim ng proteksyon ng pulis si Lucero. Ayon sa nakalap na impormasyon, ‘sumuko’ siya sa lokal na yunit ng Philippine National Police (PNP) matapos paslangin si Badion,” the NPA said.
(The investigation conducted proved Lucero was under police protection. According to pieces of information we gathered, he ‘surrendered’ to the local PNP unit after Badion was killed.)
But the police did not press charges against Lucero and instead sent him home with money and grocery items, the group added.
Lucero was also a known police asset who, despite being involved in theft charges has not been jailed, the NPA said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/karletz.jpg9601435Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-10-13 11:55:372021-10-13 11:55:38‘Justice,’ Kadamay says of death of Badion’s alleged assassin
Today, October 9, marks the first death anniversary of Baby River Emmanuel, the three-month old infant who was born in detention by her political detainee mother Reina Mae Nasino. Mother and child were separated early and the infant died weeks later due to the State’s denial of maternal care for her.
In a display of State cruelty, the Philippine National Police and the Bureau of Jail Management ran away with the infant’s remains on October 16, 2020, during her burial. It shocked the country and the whole world.
In partnership with human rights groups Karapatan Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights and Kapatid, Kodao Productions will premiere a film based on the events surrounding Baby River’s death and burial. It will be held next Saturday, October 16, at four o’clock in the afternoon.
The video-documentary “River of Tears and Rage” isdirected by multi-awarded filmmaker and former political prisoner Maricon Montajes and written by journalist Raymund Villanueva. It is based largely on Kodao Productions team’s Facebook Live coverage of the controversial burial, led by Jola Diones-Mamangun, Sanaf Marcelo, Jek Alcaraz and Joseph Cuevas. Music was by Jhoc Jacob.
The premiere will be streamed live on Kodao, Kapatid and Karapatan’s Facebook pages.
The film is dedicated to the memory of the recently-departed National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera, Kodao’s long-time Board of Directors chairperson. #
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/poster-river-scaled.jpg25601792Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-10-09 09:32:412021-10-11 16:43:51KODAO TO PREMIERE FILM ON BABY RIVER
GENEVA, Switzerland—Filipinos in Europe held a rally at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in this city to press for an international investigation into harassments against human rights defenders and critics of the Rodrigo Duterte government in the Philippines.
Geneva Forum as well as Europe-based chapters of Migrante, Anakbayan and Gabriela gathered at the city center last Wednesday, October 6, as the 48th Regular Session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) was ongoing.
The groups said they also support the investigation by the International Criminal Court on the state of human rights in the Philippines.
“Activists have been killed over the last year, both by the security forces and by unknown individuals. In many instances, activists were killed after being red-tagged. In virtually none of the cases has anyone been held accountable for the killings,” the groups in a statement said.
The organizations urged the UNHRC to establish mechanisms that would address rights violations in the Philippines.
“We appeal to International organizations and community to help us put an immediate stop to the criminalization and attacks against activists, lawyers and journalists, which has continued over the year, with impunity, despite the fact that the UNHRC has adopted the resolution extending technical assistance and capacity-building to the Philippine government,” the protesters said.
In his speech, Fr. Angel Cortez of Franciscan International noted that the proposed investigation by the UNHRC on the state of human rights in the Philippines has yet to fully proceed.
“As a Filipino, I want to raise a voice and bring the voice of our people on the present situation in Duterte’s administration that until now there’s no independent investigation mandated by the UNHRC and the killings is go on amid the [coronavirus] pandemic.”
President Duterte said UNHRC and ICC investigations are unwanted interventions into internal matters and have threatened to slap and arrest international investigators who dare come into the Philippines.
During the rally, the protesters also expressed support to international rights institutions such as CIVICUS Monitor and Investigate PH that demanded accountability for the perpetrators of rights violations in the Philippines.
In a recent country research brief, CIVICUS Monitor said that “serious civic freedoms violations continue to occur, creating a chilling effect within civil society” a year after the UNHRCs adoption of a resolution that pointed out extrajudicial killings and political repression in the Philippines.
CIVICUS Monitor said the resolution is “profoundly weak” if it does not investigate violations in the Philippines as recommended by UN High Commissioner on Human Rights Michelle Bachelet in 2020. #
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/1-1.jpg442960Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-10-07 11:09:332021-10-07 11:12:09Pinoys in Europe urge UN to press investigations into Duterte’s human rights violations
Unfazed by “thinly-veiled threats” by the Rodrigo Duterte government, teachers from various federations held protest actions in many schools in Metro Manila to demand for unpaid benefits on World Teachers’ Day today, October 5.
“Overworked, underpaid and under-supported” teachers held mini protest actions in their schools and hung tarpaulins listing five demands they said is owed them by the government amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Manila Public School Teachers’ Association members participate in a nationally-coordinated protest action on World Teachers Day 2021.
Led by the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), the teachers said they demand salary upgrading, service credits and overtime pay, laptops and other gadgets for their online classes, P3,000 inflation adjustment allowance and P10,000 tax-exempt honorarium for their work as election inspectors in next year’s national and local elections.
“World Teachers’ Day is our day, and we are again presenting our dire situation and just demands on this day. We call on the Department of Education (DepEd) and the rest of the Duterte administration: spare us your empty messages of gratitude for teachers this year. This year, we urge you to simply listen and act on our just demands,” ACT secretary general Raymond Basilio said in a statement.
ACT said the demands have been repeatedly presented to the DepEd but were instead met with threats of administrative charges if the teachers hold protest actions.
“The shameless attempts of DepEd to invalidate our calls and dampen our resolve to fight for teachers’ rights and welfare will not stand. Our teachers have been struggling for too long because of DepEd and Duterte’s extreme neglect and incompetence. We will take no more of it,” the group said.
Political repression
Aside from ignoring their economic demands, ACT said DepEd has allowed the government’s anti-insurgency campaign to sow terror among teachers who are members of various organizations.
In a press conference last Saturday, ACT recalled their organization has been the target of vicious red-tagging activities by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) that has resulted in the filing of trumped up charges against their leaders.
The government also accused several universities in being involved in the so-called “Red October Plot” a Malacanan Palace spokesperson said was hatched to overthrow the Rodrigo Duterte administration.
The group also complained against NTF-ELCAC’s seminars among students and teachers as well as recently-revealed operations to purge libraries of alleged “subversive books.”
ACT however said the teachers are not fazed by government’s fascist campaigns.
“[W]e have the lessons of history on our side and we know where we stand. We will fight for academic freedom and all other rights and liberties put under siege by this wretched government,” the group said.
In Pasay City, ACT Teachers Party has chosen World Teachers Day to file its Certification of Nomination and Acceptance with the Commission on Elections for next year’s party list elections. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/act-2.jpg540960Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-10-05 13:20:552021-10-05 13:35:44Teachers demand unpaid benefits, protest repression on World Teachers’ Day 2021
