Panagutin ang rehimeng Marcos-Duterte!Hold the Marcos-Duterte regime accountable!
This International Human Rights Day, Malaya Movement USA joins organizations in the Philippines calling for justice and accountability against the Marcos and Duterte regimes for their crimes against the Filipino people. As the fake alliance between Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte falls apart, it's crucial for Filipinos and our allies to hold both regimes accountable for the thousands of deaths, arrests, disappearances, and imprisonments, while millions suffer under inhumane poverty conditions. We echo the calls for Sara’s impeachment, Duterte’s imprisonment, and urge the US government to stop funding Marcos Jr.'s fascist policies.
War and militarism
For the Philippines, this human rights crisis is bound to the expansion of war and militarism, forged by rival superpowers, the US and China. Both countries are vying for economic and military control in the Asia Pacific. Marcos Jr is more than willing to sacrifice Filipinos’ mortal safety and the Philippines’ territorial integrity in service of the United States, which is currently enthusiastically funding his regime’s all-out counterinsurgency tactics and war crimes against ordinary Filipinos, if it means beefing up the Philippines as its strongest military outpost in the Pacific. In other words, Marcos is literally selling the Philippines’ autonomy and serving as foot soldier for the US for billions of US dollars, which his administration then uses to kill Filipinos with impunity.
9 total Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) bases
$500 million committed in Foreign Military Financing in 2024 alone, with $128 million allocated for EDCA infrastructure
18,300+ total members of the AFP and U.S. military for the Balikatan and Kamandag Exercises in 2024
$1.14 billion worth of military planes, arms, armored vehicles, and other hardware between 2015 to 2022
At least a dozen confirmed vessel confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels.
Marcos Jr.’s abysmal human rights records
For Marcos Jr., veiled under a facade of democracy and decency, his Bagong Pilipinas, is a fascistic and unrelenting regime that was found guilty of war crimes by the International People’s Tribunal earlier this year. He has fully implemented fascist policies from his predecessors, such as the Anti-Terror Law of 2020 from Duterte and the Terrorism Financing Prevention Act of 2012 from Aquino. The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict and the Armed Forces of the Philippines are operating without restraint and the violations are mounting. According to Karapatan, a human rights alliance in the Philippines, since July 2022, there have been:
119 extrajudicial killings
201 illegal or arbitrary arrests
63,380 indiscriminate firing
43,582 forced evacuations
14 enforced disappearances
560 forced or fake surrenders
46,921 indiscriminate bombings
3,706,413 cases of threats, harassments, and intimidations
757 political prisoners, with 148 arrested under Marcos Jr.
The Duterte clans’ brazen violence and corruption
Rodrigo Duterte is finally being put on trial for his crimes against the Filipino people. Investigations led by the House of Representatives have heard testimonies from the family and friends of victims of extrajudicial killings under his regime. He confessed to enforcing the “nanlaban” narrative to justify the use of deadly force, But the pursuit of justice remains incomplete and Rodrigo remains free. All efforts must be exhausted to hold him accountable. In total, those killed under his regime:
6,252 in police anti-drug operations
30,000+ in vigilante-style operations, with at least 122 children
427 human rights defenders and activists
166 land and environmental defenders
22 peasant massacres, claiming the lives of 123 people
23 journalists and media workers
66 judges and lawyers
28 mayors and vice mayors
6 or 7 by Duterte himself
His daughter and current Vice President, Sara Duterte, is creating a legacy of corruption and violence on her own. As the Marcoses and Dutertes try to grasp for power ahead of the 2025 Midterm elections, the feud is escalating to new heights. Sara’s record has led to:
2 impeachment cases filed against her for betrayal of public trust
Spurred on by investigations into anomalous confidential expenditures equal to P612.5 million from 2022 to 2023 which include:
P125 million in Confidential and Intelligence Funds (CIF) spent in 11 days
P112.5 million in mysterious cash advances by the Department of Education in 2023 while Sara served as its Secretary
1 confession to a revenge assassination plot against President Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta, and House Speaker Romualdez
Economic violence
This especially dire human rights situation is worsening in the context of an economic crisis that is barrelling down on everyday people all over the world. The price of housing, bills, groceries and other basic necessities continue to skyrocket. Meanwhile, the rich continue to get richer off the backs of workers. Workers are squeezed for maximum profit under precarious and dangerous working conditions for little pay. As the budget deliberations continue on through December 2024, Marcos Jr.’s priorities expose his anti-people agenda, pushing for more funding for fascist militarization and counterinsurgency over social services like public health and food security. He’s also funneling in more money for infrastructure projects that are unnecessary and don’t address the needs of the people, similar to his father’s tried and tested tactic to plunder the Filipino people’s money.
44.1% of the population experiencing severe and moderate food insecurity in Southeast Asia
P440 average daily wage across the country, far short of the recommended P1,200 family living wage
Over 6,000 OFWs continue to leave the country everyday
16.3 million families self rated as poor
Globally, 692 million live below the $2.15 per day poverty line
Environmental degradation & natural disasters
Environmental degradation that exacerbate the impacts of natural disasters are directly correlated to economic plunder and increased militarism. Coupled with neglect by the fascist state, the Philippines was devastated by typhoons and between October to November, the country was hit by 6 typhoons. Throughout 2024, these typhoons have resulted in:
At least 257 killed & 53 missing
Millions displaced from their homes
$772 million+ in damages to agricultural lands and infrastructure
Migrants rights are human rights
In the US, the looming return of fascist Trump is causing distress and fear among especially vulnerable communities. Let us not forget that Trump was an avid fan of Duterte’s vicious rule and stressed that the Philippines was “prime real estate” for the US. Trump’s already done the work to villainize progressive organizations and so we can expect the fascist repression to only increase under his regime. This is especially concerning after the outrageous statement by Ambassador Romualdez to self-deport.
3,500 Filipinos deported under the first Trump administration
Estimated 370,000 to 1 million undocumented Filipinos in the U.S.
Estimated 4 million mixed status families
Genuine solidarity to defend and uphold human rights!
The state of human rights is clearly on the decline, not just in the Philippines but the entire world. The US-backed Israeli government's genocidal attacks on Palestine have intensified and have expanded into Syria after the overthrow of Assad, while calls for an arms embargo have been ignored by the US Congress and resolutions for ceasefire blocked at the UN. In South Korea, President Yoon declared Martial Law and was overturned within hours after mass outrage.
It is our duty to stand in solidarity with the millions facing the brunt of fascist and violent regimes. As Malaya Movement USA we remain committed to defend and uphold basic human rights of Filipinos and all oppressed peoples. It is through collective action that we assert the right to defend our basic human rights.
Take Action
Become a member! Attend the National New Member Orientation on Dec 20 tinyurl.com/1220-NMO
Order a Palayain! Free All Political Prisoner Shirt tinyurl.com/palayain-shirt-order
Donate to Malaya Movement USA malayamovement.com/donate
Learn about the Philippine Human Rights Act: humanrightsph.org
Join International Human Rights Day Actions
NATIONAL
Dec 7: 3pm PT / 6pm ET | Hustisya! National Trip Reportback
RSVP: tinyurl.com/Dec7-IHRD
TAMPA BAY, FL
Dec 7: 6pm ET | Reportback watch party
Email for more info: malayamovement.fl@gmail.com
LOS ANGELES, CA
Dec 9: 6pm PT || Balikbayan
RSVP: tinyurl.com/RSVPbalikbayan1209
WASHINGTON DC
Dec 10: 3pm ET | ICHRP Conference & Mobilization
UNION CITY, CA
Dec 10: 6:45pm PT | PHRA/PERA Community Action at Union City City Council Meeting
CHICAGO WEST, IL
Dec 10: 9-4pm CT | PHRA Phone Barrage
PORTLAND, OR
Dec 10: 6pm PT | Talakantahan: Songs and Stories from the Homeland
RSVP: tinyurl.com/D10talakantahan
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Dec 11: 6pm PT | Grassroots Organizing Under the Rise of Fascism Pol Ed & Discussion
RSVP: tinyurl.com/IHRD1211
CHICAGO, IL
Dec 12: 6:30pm CT | International Human Rights Day Panel
RSVP: tinyurl.com/IHRD-D12
NATIONAL
Dec 20: 5:00pm PT/7:00pm CT/8:00pm ET| New Member Orientation
RSVP: tinyurl.com/1220-NMO
