Peasants to launch marathon protest-march against ‘Peasants’ Enemy No. 1’

“Military, police sabotage will not stop us!”

Press Release
By KASAMA-TK
October 14, 2010

Peasant groups announced today that efforts of foil-up from the Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine National Police will not stop their weeklong protest march against the Aquino’s Haciendero Republic.

Dubbed as the “Lakbayan ng mga Magsasaka Laban sa Hacienderong Rehimen ni Aquino!”, peasants and other sectors  from Southern Tagalog led by KASAMA-TK and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-Southern Tagalog will march from their provinces on October 18 until they reach Mendiola bridge on October 21.

The groups slam Noynoy Aquino’s administration for its apparent incompetence to address the root problem of land reform in the country. They named Aquino as “Peasants’ Enemy No. 1” for continuing Arroyo’s bloody military rule in the countryside with the extension of Oplan Bantay Laya.

Axel Pinpin, Secretary General of KASAMA-TK said that Aquino has deliberately made no mention about the issue of genuine land reform three times already: from his inauguration, State of the Nation Address and first 100-days speech. Instead, within 100-days of Aquino’s rule, the people only heard empty words on wang-wang, hotdog and condoms. Now even his blossoming love-life seems more important than the poor he ought to serve. Pinpin stressed that the peasants will no longer expect anything fruitful from this regime.

“At this point in time, we anticipate no one else but the military and police to stop us from airing our protests. This may be in form of blockades and added checkpoints around the region or any way that can harass the people who are to participate in the Lakabayan. But we warn them that they will not be successful, nothing can stop our rage against this regime’s ignorance to the peasants’ plight,” Pinpin stressed noting reasons such as the election gun ban that may serve as plots to trumped-up more charges and prevent the protesters from reaching Manila.

On October 5, three days before Aquino’s 100 days, three peasant organizers dubbed as the “Lumban 3” which includes Darwin Liwag, vice-chairperson of KASAMA-TK were arrested at a checkpoint in Lumban, Laguna by military elements. The three are still detained today and are charged for illegal possession of firearms and explosives and for allegedly being members of the New People’s Army.

Pinpin, as a former political detainee himself from the ‘Tagaytay 5’, recalls a similar instance in the past. On April 28, 2006 military men illegally arrested and charged them with similar accounts three days before the May 1, Labor Day protest. They were later on presented to the public as a group set to “overthrow Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and destabilize the government.”

“We demand the immediate release of our fellow peasants including all political detainees in the country. Aquino’s amnesty to Antonio Trillanes and 300 other rebel soldiers only reveals his character of petting the military to ensure that his state power is intact,” Pinpin said. He added that Aquino may be fearful of any coup de-tat that may occur since his mother’s governance was wrapped with numerous cases of military rebellion.

Meanwhile, Andrianne Mark Ng, BAYAN-ST spokesperson, stated that the new regime just like Arroyo’s tactics employ state violence to quell the people’s dissent in the region. Within 100 days of the Aquino governance, 5 out of the 9 extrajudicial killings in the country came from the Rizal province. In Batangas, the continuous presence of the CAFGU and recruitment to minors led to a brutal beat-up of a 17-year-old boy who lost his sanity in the incident.

“With the extension of Oplan Bantay Laya until 2011 and the Supreme Court’s reaffirmation of the Anti-Terror Law of 2007, the peasants and people who remain as critics to the government risk once again to become the next victims of human rights violations,” Ng stressed.

“We have seen how the president of Chile responded on saving the lives of Chilean miners who were trapped underground for two months. Here in our country, the president himself buries the peasants to their graves with the continued implementation of bogus laws and policies such as Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program with Extension and Reforms, and the Stock Distribution Option,” Ng added.

He also commented that from Aquino’s main promise of erasing corruption nothing has happened. Jueteng is still rampant and accountable individuals such as Rico Puno go unpunished. Meanwhile, Gloria Arroyo remains scot free from her crimes of corruptions to the people. “Just yesterday Arroyo testified for the NBN-ZTE scandal, how can that happen when she remains the primary culprit of the corruption case?” Ng said.