Palayain! Free All political prisoners!
Nine months have passed since Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., and Sara Duterte were declared President and Vice President of the Philippines, and the human rights situation in the country continues to worsen. Despite toning down on aggressive and militaristic rhetoric, Marcos pledged to continue the intensification of militarization and repression, following in the footsteps of his predecessors: Ferdinand Marcos, Sr., and Rodrigo Duterte. The Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and other paramilitary forces will become increasingly emboldened as they continue the hostilities seen during the war on drugs and the targeting of human rights defenders. Additionally, the judicial system will continue to be weaponized with Marcos, Jr.,’s appointment of Boying Remulla as the Secretary of the Department of Justice, an expert red-tagger who believes that “red-tagging is part of the democratic process.”
Human rights violations and extrajudicial killings continue to increase as seen by the assassination of journalist and critic Percy “Lapid” Mabasa of the Lapid Fire radio show. Across the Philippines, the trend of political arrests and detention continues under the Marcos-Duterte regime as seen by the recent arrests of Adora Faye de Vera, a former political prisoner and survivor of torture and rape during Marcos, Sr.,’s martial law; labor rights activists such as Kara Taggaoa and Benjamin “Banjo” Cordero; and the Lumad brothers Ismael and Mawing Pangadas. There are currently 802 political prisoners detained in the Philippines--cramped in congested prisons and faced with trumped-up charges. 81 of them are elderly, 98 have pre-existing medical conditions and are suffering from life-threatening illnesses, and 162 are women.
Like Duterte, Marcos has retained the Anti-Terror Law, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) and the “whole of nation approach” as part of his counterinsurgency programs, and other tools of repression at his disposal. We see the continued use of trumped-up charges against activists as a means to suppress those who are critical of the regime, especially among journalists, trade unionists, farmers, and land defenders.
The Philippines has the world’s second most congested prison system with a 537% overcrowding rate. Since 2016, Duterte's drug war has increased the prison population by 40%. Additionally, the Philippines is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to make the immediate release of the political prisoners even more urgent. As with the 300,000+ persons deprived of liberty (PDL) in the world’s second most congested prison system, political prisoners in different jails nationwide subsist on a ₱70 daily budget, which amounts to just over $1 USD, but they get less because of corruption and mismanagement.
The Malaya Movement national campaign “Palayain: Free all Political Prisoners” aims to build awareness about the conditions of the growing number of political prisoners in the Philippines, highlight the causes they are fighting for, and provide tangible support for their well-being while calling for their immediate and unconditional release. This past year, our campaign’s working group collaborated with Karapatan and Kapatid, an alliance of individuals, family, and loved ones of political prisoners and organizations working for the promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines. Their founders and members have been at the forefront of the human rights struggle in the Philippines since the time of Marcos, Sr.,’ martial law regime.
Our last meeting with Karapatan and Kapatid in July 2022 helped mobilize more of our members and deepened our understanding of the current situation in regards to the arrests and detainment of political prisoners. Among other events, the working group also held a great and intimate screening of Liway, a 2018 Filipino independent film based on true events, in September 2022 in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Martial Law in the Philippines. The film depicts the experiences of Dakip, a young boy growing up in a prison as the son of anti-Marcos dissident Cecilia Flores-Oebanda, better known as Commander Liway, during the waning days of the Marcos dictatorship. Our working group continues to dispatch our monthly newsletter updating our organizational and community members about the latest news on political prisoners in the Philippines. We have also started letter writing campaigns to offer support and encouragement to kasamas and their families back in the Philippines. Lastly, as of December 2022, we have fundraised $2,959 to further support the needs of political detainees! These funds will continue to support our campaign and help provide political prisoners with basic necessities such as rice, medicine, clothing, feminine products, vitamins, water purifiers, and much more. We will continue to uplift their stories and fight for their unconditional and immediate release. Please reach out to our Palayain: Free All Political Prisoners campaign at Malaya Movement if you’d like to learn more and get involved! Activism is not a crime! Free all political prisoners now!
Photo credit: Kapatid
