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More Filipinos now open to Aquino’s resignation

Progressive groups press for President Benigno Aquino’s resignation after both the Philippine National Police Board of Inquiry and the Senate revealed he is accountable for the death of police troopers in the Janaury 25th Mamasapano incident.

In a rally at Mendiola, Manila last March 20, the explained that such a call is within the bounds of the Constitution.

The rally also came at the heels of the March 1-7 Pulse Asia survey showing that while 42 percent are not in favor of Aquino’s resignation, 29 percent are for it and 28 percent are undecided.

“This shows that 57% to 58% of respondents are open to idea of the President’s resignation. This is a very significant change in public opinion and shows how Aquino’s support has dramatically eroded,” former Bayan Muna representative Teddy Casino said.

“Tayo’y mga Pinoy”: Noynoy Resign Now!

Heber Bartolome of Banyuhay, with Mae Paner aka Juana Change, renders “Tayo’y mga Pinoy” at the Manila protest march rally calling for Pres. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino’s resignation. Aquino was depicted as a Pinocchio puppet of the United States whose nose gets longer as he tells more lies about the Mamasapano incident. Elmer “Bong” Labog, Chair of the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and the Philippines Chapter of the International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS-Phils), speaks at the program covered live by nationwide TV broadcasts for the evening news.

Statement of the Balit Mission

“O righteous God, Who searches minds and hearts, bring to an end the violence of the wicked and make the righteous secure.”—Psalm 7:9

We, participants of the International Solidarity Mission implore our just Creator to help his temporal servants bring justice and peace to our Banwaon sisters and brothers in Barangay Balit, San Luis, Agusan del Sur, Philippines currently suffering from acts of the wicked.

Our Banwaon brethren of about a thousand souls belonging to 174 families are being persecuted since the 26th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army (IBPA) launched its so-called Community Organizing for Peace and Development (COPD) in the last quarter of 2014. They are forced to abandon their homes, farms and forests to save themselves, especially their children, from relentless persecution by state forces. They now suffer woeful conditions in an evacuation center, unheeded by civilian government officials and institutions mandated to care for them.

Inhumane persecution from state forces

Our mission documented 93 cases of human rights violations, including indiscriminate firing, restriction of movement, gun-touting, destruction and divestment of properties, use of public facilities for military purposes, use of civilians as guides or human shields, fake surrenders, threats, harassments, and intimidation against the Banwaon in San Luis. Barangay Balit Chairperson Necasio Precioso was extra-judicially killed on December 22, 2015 while on his way to a dialogue at the Municipal Hall on the issue of the soldiers’ illegal and unwelcome stay in his community. We unearthed the killing of Salcinita Manlapinding and her nephew Oto Precioso last year by the paramilitary group Mabantag led by Narding Pascual, a CAFGU member. Women and children suffer the most from these evil acts perpetrated by the 26th IBPA stationed in the Banwaon communities of San Luis.

The mission confirmed and documented the encampment of elements of the 26th IBPA at the barangay hall of Barangay Nuevo Trabajo and near the barangay hall of Barangay Balit, in violation of official pronouncements and the international humanitarian law enshrined in the Geneva Conventions. These acts are also immoral as their presence in civilian communities terrifies the populace, especially women and children.

Inhumane conditions at the evacuation center

Since their evacuation four children have died because of diseases and the lack of necessary medical attention. The evacuees live in a constricted place without livelihood, limited source of clean water, and woeful lack of hygiene facilities. They suffer from cough, fever, dysentery, urinary tract infection, and hypertension as a result. They find it difficult to cope with daytime heat and nighttime cold. They are emotionally stressed by their condition and lack of proper nutrition that make them more susceptible to even the most common of diseases.

The medical clinic conducted during our mission served 108 patients, 40 of whom were offered more consultations and check-ups because of the severity of their ailments. At least 150 children participated in the play sessions we organized as part of our psycho-social interventions to try to lessen their emotional and mental traumas. The children shared their hardships during their evacuation to Balit when they had to walk for two days. They complain about the lack of food in the evacuation center, unlike in their communities where they were at least innocent of such depravity. Even the children know the AFP and its COPD cruelly drove them away from their communities.

Inhumane violation of their rights

The Banwaon’s refusal to apply for a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) must be respected and not considered as a subversive decision. They have collectively decided not to surrender their age-old stewardship of their ancestral domains to a piece of paper. Experience has taught them that a mere certificate means nothing in the face of destructive activities such as large-scale mining and logging by local and foreign corporations. They know that such so-called developments are only implemented by intimidation and force of arms by the state and its forces, as evidenced by a pangayaw (tribal war) against them by a paramilitary group led by a fellow Banwaon who is also a CAFGU (Citizen’s Armed Forces Geographical Unit) para-military.

The Banwaon loathe the COPD in their communities and territory. They have not given it a community-defined free, prior and informed consent (FPIC). It is clear that the military forced their will and way in complete disregard to universally accepted indigenous peoples’ rights. Fourteen communities are abandoned and cultural and traditional structures are endangered as a result.

Our conclusions and demands

We express our deep disappointment with the inaction and lack of concern of the local government unit of San Luis to the plight of the Banwaon evacuees in Barangay Balit. They refuse to act on the petitions of the victims against the illegal and immoral military encampments of military units. To date, they have only given 20 sacks of rice to the evacuees, good only for a day when the evacuation is already several weeks long.

We condemn the inutility and criminal inaction of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP). According to the evacuees, the NCIP still has to pay them a visit, even when they are legally and morally obligated to do so.

We support the Banwaon currently in Balit who we regard not as hapless evacuees but as an indigenous people bravely fighting for their rights to land, life, resources and self-determination. We support them not only with the humble things we have given them but as comrades in their struggles as well. We share their dreams of being back in their communities to serve as true stewards of their lands and its blessings. We lend our voices to their demand that the 26th IBPA and the paramilitary groups leave them in peace and at once. We demand justice for the martyrs of their struggles and accountability for the perpetrators of the killings and other human rights violations, not the least of which is the government cruelly violent against this country’s most peaceful yet neglected citizens.

For “When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.” (Proverbs 21:15)

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We are indigenous peoples from other parts of Mindanao and the Philippines, church leaders and workers, health workers, mass media workers, youth and students, and human rights defenders from the organizations of Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP), Asia Indigenous Peoples’ Network on Extractive Industries and Energy (AIPNE), Kalumbay regional lumad organization, Philippine Task Force for Indigenous People (PTFIP), Ecumenical Bishops Forum (EBF), Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI), Missionary Sisters of Mary (MSM), Karapatan-North Mindanao Region, Karapatan-Caraga, Kasalo, Council of Health for Development (CHD), Community-Based Health Services (CBHS), Kalumaran Mindanao, League of Filipino Students (MSU–IIT & Bukidnon), Liga ng Kabataang Moro-Marawi, lawyers, various and others.

09 March 2015, Balit, San Luis, Agusan Del Sur

(More stories at http://www.rmp-nmr.org/)

International Women’s Day 2015

March 8, 2015

International Women’s Day

Women from different sectors held protest actions in Manila and other major cities in the country under the banner of GABRIELA, the largest women’s organization in the Philppines. They reiterated their call for truth and justice for the Mamasapano victims and demand for Aquino’s resignation.

“Our demand for Aquino’s resignation is not just about his failure in Mamasapano but everything about the failure of his presidency to serve the interest of the people and uplift the situation of women. In his 5 years in power, he served the interests of the US and big businesses despite the fact that women and their families are already deep into poverty,” said Joms Salvador, Secretary General of GABRIELA. She cited the rise of poverty incidence to 25.8%, amounting to a quarter of the population.

The group paraded a large effigy of Pres. Aquino perched in a drone emphasizing the US’ role in in Mamasapano and the drone, in turn, is perched on board the USS Pelleliu to symbolize the violence that women experience as a result of US intervention in the Philippines.

Earlier at daybreak, members of GABRIELA trooped to Camp Crame to give support and express solidarity with the widows of Mamasapano in their quest for truth and justice for their loved ones in the activity tagged as “Walk With Widows, Run for Heroes” led by Philippine National Police Alumni.

“International Women’s Day provides a platform for all women to express their issues and demands as one voice,” Salvador said. “The widows of Mamasapano are fighting for a legitimate issue – truth and justice – and we are standing with them in this fight.”

The mobilization in the capital is just one of the many Women’s Day actions led by GABRIELA in different cities in the country and abroad. A total of 25,000 people, mostly women, are expected to join the actions nationwide, with Metro Manila accounting for half of the total.

Aside from Metro Manila, International Women’s Day protests are also ongoing in major cities like Baguio City, Angeles City, Tuguegarao City, Calamba, Batangas, Daet, Naga City, Masbate, Legazpi City, Sorsogon City, Iloilo City, Roxas City, Tacloban City, Bacolod City and Davao City. GABRIELA overseas chapters in the US East and West Coasts, Australia and Hongkong also spearheaded protest actions today

ILPS-Phils picket at Mexican embassy

Workers and peasants, including rural women, picket the Mexican embassy in the Philippines seeking justice for the murder of Gustavo Salgado Delgado, an activist-leader of the Frente Popular Revolucionario in Mexico. The embassy received a formal complaint from the Philippines Chapter of the International League of People’s Struggle (ILPS-Phils).

LARAWAN: The Balit Mission

An international journey in defense of the displaced Banwaon
Butuan City
March 8-9, 2015

On January 23 of this year, 174 Banwaon families (composed of around 1,000 individuals, approximately 80% of whom are women and children) from the communities of Kimambukagyang, Tabon-tabon, Tabanganan, Nakadayas, Pig-ulingan, Mimpalaos, Maputi, Kandiisan, Tambo and KM 48 went on a massive exodus to the village center of Balit in the municipality of San Luis, Agusan del Sur. They were running from forced development.

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Orientation before the mission at Missionary Sisters of Mary, Butuan City.

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Participants from Cagayan De Oro.

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Aldeem Yanez, ISM Coordinator, Ecumenical Bishop Forum, North West Mindanao

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Municipality of San Luis, Agusan Del Sur

 

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LOBBYING: ISM delegates with Vice Mayor Jose Chua of San Luis, Agusan Del Sur

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San Luis Municipal Police Station

 

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PINSP Rodel Razon Dorado of San Luis Municipal Police Station: Necasio’s case is still under investigations.

 

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Military elements were seen inside the barangay hall of Nuevo Trabajo, Balit, Agusan Del Sur.

 

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Military camp at Balit, Agusan Del Sur, a few meters from the Banwaon evacuation center.

 

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Displaced Banwaon families from 14 communities of San Luis, Agusan Del Sur.

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Noynoy Out Now! Ano o Sino ang ipapalit?

Launching of NOYNOY OUT NOW!
Quezon City Sports Club
March 5, 2015

Aquino’s criminal liability — 5 cases

At the public launch of NOW! (Noynoy Out Now), presented March 5, 2015, Atty. Edre Olalia of the NUPL (National Union of People’s Lawyers) cited Pres. Aquino’s criminal liability in at least five cases: 1) DAP; 2) EDCA; 3) Yolanda; 4) Impunity; and 5) Mamasapano.

The Mining Act of 1995 is a long-wrought tragedy for indigenous peoples

The benefits of mining argued by mining corporations as compensatory for its immense social costs and environmental destruction is a lie. Mining corporations in collusion with the government paint a rosy picture of mining, insisting on “responsible mining” and “there is life in mining” yet its impacts on the environment and people, especially to the indigenous peoples, tell a different story.

The Mining Act of 1995 is a long-wrought tragedy to indigenous people. It worsens foreign-favored, one sided, anti-people policy of liberalization of the mining industry. It bridges and aggravates the centuries-old foreign plunder of resources in our lands. The Mining Act of 1995 worsens the oppressions against us.

As our ancestors did, we have valiantly defended our lands from the transgressions, and today we defend our land and life from liberalized mining. However, we found ourselves pitted against government forces as they play protector of large-scale mines. Deployment of military forces where there are large-scale mining interests are massive.

As if the massive deployment of military was not enough, the AFP recruits indigenous peoples to paramilitary groups. Reneging its campaign promise to dissolve paramilitary groups at the aftermath of the Ampatuan massacre, President BS Aquino beefs up the viciousness of its armed forces by allowing the formation of paramilitary groups and use them as pawns in counter-insurgency and as mining security. Under the BS Aquino presidency, 50 indigenous peoples, including 6 indigenous women and 6 indigenous children, were slain by the AFP and paramilitary groups.

The violation of human rights of indigenous peoples worsened as a result of mining and militarization. On October 18, 2012, member of the 26th Infantry Battalion strafed the home of Juvy Capion, a Blaan woman and one of the leaders of the Blaan people’s fight against the mining operations of SMI-Xstrata in their ancestral lands. The attack on their home killed and 8 months- pregnant Juvy, and her two young sons. Kitari Capion, Datu Anting Freay, and 16-year-old Victor Freay adds to the lists of Blaan people killed by suspected military forces in the SMI-Xstrata mining site between 2012 and 2013.

Military operations also caused the forced evacuation of communities. Thousands of indigenous peoples repeatedly evacuated in Surigao del Sur, agusan del Sur, Compostela Valley, and Bukidnon among others.

In tandem with violence, the government uses deception to facilatate the entry of mining outfits in ancestral lands. The connivance of the government and mining corporations is best exemplified by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP.) The NCIP is the lead agency in deceiving, manipulating, bribing and dividing indigenous peoples.

Instead of upholding IP rights and welfare against business interests, NCIP only negotiated in favor of the latter. The NCIP conducts “consultations” for mining outfits to fulfill the mandated Free Prior Informed Consent of indigenous communities. However, the FPIC process is riddled with issues of corruption, bribery, and coercion; and it has been used to legalize the entry of development projects in ancestral lands. The IPRA neither projects nor defends the rights of indigenous peoples to their lands and self-determination. It is tool of the State, deceptive and lethal, for plunder and exploitations of indigenous people’s lands.

The Mining Act of 1995, aided by the IPRA and strengthened BS Aquino’s very own EO 79 is a deadly combination for the rights of indigenous peoples to their lands and to self-determination.

For us indigenous peoples, the BS Aquino administration brings no respite from environmental destruction, human rights violations, repression, and oppressions similar to past regimes. Its continued implementation of the Mining Act of 1995 is a testament to this fact.

KMU: Game Over, Aquino Resign

Multisectoral groups led by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) resume protest in Mendiola to press for Aquino’s resignation in the aftermath of the bloody Mamasapano incident. This time the groups were joined by the students from different universities in Manila who marched from different points going to Mendiola. It was the first big protest march to Mendiola one month after the Mamasapano incident.

Mendiola, Manila
February 27, 2015