Justice for Randall “Ka Randy” Echanis! Stop the Killings of Peace Advocates and Activists!
OFFICIAL STATEMENT
August 11, 2020
Malaya Movement Statement on the Assassination of Randy Echanis
The Malaya Movement condemns the assassination of Randall “Ka Randy” Echanis, National Chairperson of Anakpawis Partylist and Deputy Secretary-General of Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), who died in his Quezon City home early Monday. We also denounce the actions of the PNP who seized his dead body later that evening from his grieving wife and family. Erlinda, Ka Randy’s wife, identified his body earlier that day, noticing signs of torture as well as multiple gunshot and stabbing wounds. We further condemn the illegal arrest and detention of paralegal Paolo Colabres, and the ridiculous charge of “obstruction to justice” for attending to the retrieval of Ka Randy’s forcibly removed remains by police.
The Malaya Movement is sounding the alarm on what we see as a Duterte regime assassination policy of activist leaders and progressive organizations. Duterte’s incessant attacks on civil liberties, press freedom, and the practice of critical dissent has left democracy in the Philippines in critical condition. Don’t let him pull the plug on the mass movement and the right to organize and advocate for the interests of the most oppressed! We call on everyone to condemn and oppose Duterte’s de facto Martial Law and to defend our leaders by building the strength of our mass movement!
As the Head Moves, So Follows the Body
As the Head of State, Duterte has cultivated a culture of terror for the dissenting and critical. He abuses his office and podium to sic his most loyal followers on whoever poses a threat to his position and grip on power. Much like the hiss and rattle of a snake, when Duterte speaks it’s expected for his body to follow soon after.
In 2017, Duterte officially declared the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) as a terrorist organization after shutting down peace talks. He soon after vowed to target legal organizations he claimed were “communist fronts”, and ordered the military to “destroy” these organizations, “and if [they] have to kill, [to] do it.”
In 2019, NDFP peace consultant on constitutional reforms, Randy Malayao, was shot and killed inside a bus by masked gunmen, which raised the total number of NDFP consultants ever killed. Ka Randy, who also served as the political consultant of the NDFP, is now the second killed under Duterte. So far, there have only been three.
The Commission on Human Rights reports that 134 Human Rights Defenders have been killed since Duterte assumed office in 2016 “largely attributable to [his] pronouncements”, they assert in a report released last month. Duterte’s public threats and unfounded red-tagging legitimate “atrocities against Human Rights Defenders because they are enemies of the State.” A similar criticism was also asserted in a recent report from the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights of the UN citing Duterte’s role in creating an environment that encourages violence and ensures impunity. While State security forces and mercenaries hold the gun, it is Duterte who pulls the trigger.
Repression Codified, Martial Law Undeclared
After an embarrassing attempt to prosecute Ka Randy along with 649 other individuals as alleged communists or rebel soldiers under the now-repealed Human Security Act, which resulted in the near dissolution of their outrageous list, Duterte consolidated power and intensified repression. Through repressive policies such as Executive Order 70, Memorandum Order 32, and the Operation Plans Kapanatagan and Kalasag, Duterte ramped up attacks on rights defenders and progressive organizations facilitated by a cabal of former military and police chiefs that he appointed as heads of civilian bureaucracies. By enacting the Anti-Terror Law, Duterte also codified the already pervasive practices of warrantless arrests and detention and enabled a legal framework for the continued use of fascist tactics like evidence-planting and producing false witnesses.
With Duterte’s Anti-Terror Law now in full effect, Ka Randy’s murder is a sure signal that activists and rights defenders must anticipate not only further extrajudicial killings committed under the cover of night, but now also legal attacks committed under the cover of the law.
A Commitment to Justice and Peace
Ka Randy has made significant contributions in advancing agrarian reform, human rights, and peace-making. As a longtime advocate for land reform and the rights of peasant farmers, he was among those who drafted the Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill (GARB). As the political consultant of the NDFP, he was active in their peace-making negotiations with the Philippine government, and participated in the joint working committee that produced the CASER or Comprehensive Agreement on Socio-Economic Reforms, which aimed to address the roots of the armed conflict that has persisted for the past 50 years.
Ka Randy’s aspirations for a more just and peaceful Philippines are imbued in the promised reforms contained in the GARB and CASER that could better the lives of millions of Filipinos. These reforms, however, will remain as promises unfulfilled as long as Duterte maintains his dictatorship, and continues to fatten his pockets and satisfy his bloodlust for power while millions suffer from his neglect and brutality.
Ka Randy lived a life committed to justice and peace, and for this he was the target of incessant persecution by authoritarian heads of state and was detained as a political prisoner under three previous administrations. We grieve with Ka Randy’s family during this time still so close to his death, yet we lift him up as a model of sincere love for the Filipino People by tirelessly advocating and fighting for the issues of the poorest and most dispossessed in the face of the government’s continued persecution. Let us emulate Ka Randy’s unwavering commitment, and continue to fight for a more just and equitable Philippine society!
Condemn Duterte’s Assassination Policy of Progressive Leaders!
Justice for Ka Randy and All the Martyrs of the People!
Makibaka! Huwag Matakot!
Oust Duterte now!
