UPLB Perspective Vol. 47, Issue 4 (February 26, 2021)

FEB R UA R Y 26 , 202 1

UPLB PERSPECTIVE

M A G S U L AT. M A G L I N G KO D . M A G PA L AYA .

◆ TA O N 47, B LG . 4

UPLB PERSPECTIVE.ORG

NEWS | 3-9 Laguna Bay: A tragedy in the making

Double issue 20 PAGES

| 10-15 What Build!

Build! Build! truly destroys

F E AT U R E S

EDITORIAL

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2

Hitting the ceiling

Duterte cannot stretch the economy and the people’s interests thin forever. History shows that it’ll backfire.

| 16-17 Feb Fair: Higit pa sa ilaw at mga musika

C U LT U R E

| 18-19 Let all schools be zones of peace

OPINION

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E D I TO R I A L

F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 | U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G Mark Ernest Famatigan Punong Patnugot Sonya Mariella Castillo Kapatnugot

S I N C E 1 97 3 • TA O N 47, B I L A N G 4

Ang opisyal na pahayagan ng mga magaaral ng Unibersidad ng Pilipinas Los Baños Silid 11, 2nd Floor Student Union Building, Mariano M. Mondonedo Avenue, UPLB 4031 perspective.uplb@up.edu.ph O P I N I O N opinion.uplbperspective@gmail.com O R GWA TC H orgwatch.uplbperspective@gmail.com E D I TO R I A L

Miyembro, UP Systemwide Alliance of Student Publications and Writers’ Organizations (UP Solidaridad) at ng College Editors’ Guild of the Philippines (CEGP)

Felipa Cheng at Dean Carlo Valmeo Mga Tagapamahalang Patnugot Reuben Pio Martinez Patnugot ng Balita Aesha Dominique Sarrol Patnugot ng Lathalain Datu Zahir Meditar Patnugot ng Kultura Ian Raphael Lopez Patnugot ng Produksyon Jermaine Valerio Kapatungot sa Grapiks

Cyril Chayanne Chan Kapatungot sa Litrato Gerardo Jr. Laydia Kapatnugot sa Paglalapat Kennlee Orola Patnugot ng Opinyon Patrice Bianca Yapjoco Patnugot sa Online Kenneth Rementilla Patnugot ng Orgwatch Claire Denise Sibucao Tagapamahala ng Sirkulasyon James Jericho Bajar Tagapamahala ng Pinansya

Mga Kawani Juan Sebastian Evangelista, Mac Andre Arboleda Kristine Paula Bautista, Dianne Sanchez, James Masangya, Sophia Pugay, Andrei Gines, Lora Noreen Domingo, Ruben Belmonte, Caleb Buenaluz, Joaquin Gonzalez IV, Taj Lagulao, Gabriel Dolot, Noreen Donato, Claire Denise Sibucao, Jed Palo, Abel Genovaña, Caren Malaluan, Paul Carson, Ma. Victoria Almazan, Angelin Ulayao, Aubrey Carnaje, Lindsay Peñaranda, Charles Alison Rivera, Giancarlo Morrondoz, Dayniele Loren, Carla Dela Cruz, Aron Jan Mitchell Sierva, Beyonce Anne Marie Nava, Reignne Francisco, Michael Ian Bartido, Zea Ancheta, Vince Villanueva, Jonas Atienza, Shane Rachel del Rosario, Antonio Enrique Ongdueco, Ron Jeric Babaran, Ralph Caneos, Emerson Espejo, Justine Fuentes, Krystelle Lachica, Frances Mendoza, Marl Ollave, Sophia Isabel Pangilinan

Dibuho ng Pabalat Aubrey Carnaje

Hitting the ceiling

P

ara sa amin, parang harassment ang dating. Kasi naghahanapbuhay ka, gusto mo sumunod, magkakaron ka pa ng violation.” Those were the words of pork vendor Toto Monterillo in an interview with ABS-CBN last February 8, roughly a week after President Duterte signed Executive Order 124 — imposing a 60day price ceiling on pork and chicken products in public markets. But what is a price ceiling anyway? In simple terms, a price ceiling can be imposed by the government when the prices of basic goods are no longer affordable for the regular consumer due to a shortage.

Imposing a price ceiling may seem like the logical thing to do, until one looks at the bigger picture. The truth is, it is only a bandaid solution, an approach too simplistic and one-dimensional. Because although goods become more affordable for the regular customer, it doesn’t exactly address the root of the problem — a shortage in supply.

And the problem was exactly that. Once again, like they often did when COVID-19 cases are on the rise, the administration pins the blame on the people. In a February 11 news report, Department of Agriculture’s William Dar says that the reason meat prices are high is because of traders who artificially manipulate the price by storing meat to create fake shortages.

However, a deeper look into the dire situation of the weakening agricultural sector will reveal the cogs behind the rising market prices for meat. Why is there a shortage of pork in the Philippines? COVID-19 wasn’t the only disease that came from China. In September 2019, the Philippines detected its first case of African Swine Fever (ASF) in backyard farms near the capital. A few months later, just after we detected our first case of COVID-19, another outbreak was reported in a dozen provinces in Davao Occidental.

DA’s response in resolving the animal health crisis was uncannily familiar — a “complete, temporary” lockdown was imposed on pig farms to prevent further spread of the virus. One year from the February 2020 Davao Occidental outbreak, the Philippines has yet to use or develop any vaccines, and has just begun investing P80-million on testing kits developed by researchers from the Central Luzon State University.

Around that time, DA announced that around 431,000 hogs were culled due to the disease, but a source in a SciDev.net interview claims that hog raisers from the private sector estimate that 4.7 million hogs are affected by the disease — roughly 36% of the hog population.

Swine inventory growth rate has plummeted while the hog inventory continues to descend.

This has consequently affecting the income of

[P] GRAPHICS BY RALPH CANEOS

hog producers and public market meat resellers in the country.

What the government fails to address are the costs involved before meat even arrives at the local public market. Thousands are spent for feed, utilities, medicines, certificates just to raise swine. More is spent for certificates, license fees, and when the meat is transported from farm to slaughterhouse to palengke. With the price cap imposed, vendors can only earn peanuts from the meat they sell, which could lead to businesses shutting down in the long run.

This, along with the the regime’s anti-people neoliberal policies like the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law and Rice Liberalization Law has only proven itself to be a burden on the Filipino people, drastically raising the price of basic goods, while corporations and foreign industries benefit from tax cuts and profiteering schemes. All

the while, the country continues to face a recession intensified by the pandemic, high inflation rates causing the weakening of the peso, astoundingly low wages, and a staggering P10.13-trillion worth of debt.

Adding fuel to the fire, as of writing, Congress has railroaded the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) bill which, according to IBON Foundation findings, will only give corporations a P133.2 billion tax cut for corporations — far from what the common Filipino needs and deserves.

Lawmakers are forwarding an “economic cha-cha” which compromises national sovereignty. If anything, a progressive taxing system must be imposed on corporations and astoundingly rich individuals in order to procure vaccines, conduct testing and contact tracing, for the economy to return to where it was pre-pandemic. How can Duterte and his

economic advisors justify a price cap, when they couldn’t address the root cause of lack of supply? More so, how dare they impose an anti-vendor price cap with the myriad of problems they choose to ignore? The price ceiling is one of many manifestations of the administration’s lack of empathy for ordinary Filipinos who simply try to make ends meet in a pandemic that the national government has neglected.

It then becomes clear that the Duterte regime’s priority is not the people’s welfare, but profit. The government has pitted the ordinary consumer with the nation’s meat vendors, favoring one’s interests over the other, but the people know better. Duterte cannot stretch the economy and the people’s interests thin forever. History tells us that famine and poverty induced by the greed of the ruling class tends to backfire in the long run.

NEWS

U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G | F E B R UA RY 2 6, 2 02 1

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PHOTO FROM DEFEND JOBS PHILIPPINES

possible worsening working conditions of laborers in subcontracted jobs.

“I wrote about the subcontracting system in one of the last projects I had worked for.

In this research I presented how the working conditions worsened on each layer of subcontracted jobs, for the readers to get a better grasp on the construction workers’ situation,” de Vries, citing that his experiences with the working class pushed him to write.

Around 2015, following an accident, he joined EILER as a research volunteer after believing that both church work and labor were “indispensible.” Despite the accusations, de Vries stood firm and asserted that he will continue his “mission” in the country.

“For almost 30 years, I was granted the privilege of being issued a permanent resident VISA [sic]. I have been living my mission in the Philippines and I have no further desire than to continue my mission among the oppressed workers,” the missionary concluded.

He who is without sin

Dutch missionary Otto de Vries has been a champion of workers’ rights in the country. His residency visa was recently revoked.

After 30 years of service, state takes aim on missionary Otto de Vries asserts that his hands are not the devil’s workshop as labor groups hit decision B Y TA J S A M U E L L A G U L A O

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

The state’s red-tagging streak continues with their latest target: Dutch missionary and labor rights activist Otto de Vries, whose visa of permanent residence is being revoked.

The reason? He was participating in protest rallies that the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) unjustifiably labeled in a December 2019 letter as organized by “Communist-Terrorist Groups front organizations.”

Such was the driving force behind the Bureau of Immigration’s (BI) decision, with the bureau using Philippine Immigration Act of 1940 as further justification.

In a report by the Inquirer, Bureau Commissioner Jaimie Morente explained that under the act, foreigners are not allowed to participate in any form of political activities such as rallies.

“There are no exemptions. Foreign nationals, regardless of their visa type, may not engage in partisan political activities,” Morente said, with the bureau emphasizing that his case had been pending since 2019. It was only this January 23 when they requested de Vries to submit his counter affidavit.

Doing the Lord’s work De Vries, who claimed to have been living with the urban poor in the City of Pasig for 20 years and is a member of the Diocese of Rotterdam, debunked the allegations raised by BI

He is more Filipino than the police and military that harass the masses... He is more Filipino than Duterte who willingly surrenders our freedom and sovereignty to foreign powers.

K I L U S A N G M AY O U N O Statement

and NICA in a testimony published in Bulatlat, saying that the cancellation of his visa was “without any valid and legal cause.”

“Contrary to the accusations of NICA, neither I nor EILER engage in acts of terrorism.

Further, EILER publishes research and educational modules based on facts and concrete conditions of the workers. It does not publish propaganda or any materials that support terrorist organizations,” de Vries retorted.

He was involved with the “well-established research NGO [non-government organization]” Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education and Research (EILER) after he shared a copy of a study he made.

The paper in question discussed the Last Ash Wednesday, de Vries faced the media after the government ordered him to leave the country.

Labor groups are aghast at another attack by the state.

PHOTO FROM DEFEND JOBS PHILIPPINES

Progressive groups took to social media to help de Vries in carrying his cross, uniting with the #HandsOffOtto. National labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) denounced the blacklisting and order to leave, claiming that the allegations are “unfounded and malicious.”

“Otto is a friend of workers and the poor.

He is in no way a terrorist... For years, he has immersed himself in workplaces and communities to study the conditions of the Filipino workers,” said KMU. Additionally, KMU noted that even before President Duterte took office, de Vries had already been helping workers through forums and educational sessions, and by volunteering for the EILER. “He is more of a Filipino than corrupt government officials that steal from the nation’s coffers. He is more Filipino than the police and military that harass, arrest and kill workers, peasants and indigenous peoples. He is more Filipino than Duterte who willingly surrenders our freedom and sovereignty to foreign powers,” the labor center exclaimed.

Meanwhile, labor group Defend Jobs Philippines likened the situation to that of Sister Patricia Fox, an Australian nun and human rights defender who was deported for criticizing Duterte back in 2018.

“Instead of deporting, harassing and prosecuting foreign nationals like Fox and De Vries, the current administration must have thanked and appreciated their efforts in volunteering to uphold, promote and defend our working people’s fundamental rights for secured jobs, higher wages, safe workplaces, labor rights protection among others – which should have been the role of the State in the first place,” said the organization.

The Student Christian Movement of the Philippines (SCMP) also defended de Vries, pointing out that NCIA’s red-tagging acts were because they are a part of Duterte’s National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

“Otto de Vries is not a terrorist. The government’s allegations against Otto are based on the long-refuted accusation that Church work that serves the marginalized in our country is a front for terrorism. This is an affront to our apostolic mission to serve the poor masses, especially in these perilous times for the people,” said SCMP. SCMP added that in time Duterte and his state forces will all regret their persecutions against the faithful, and called on the Christian youth to defend Church workers facing state terrorism.

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F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 | U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G

7 Lumad children illegally flown to Davao after raid Terror in Cebu continues after Feb. 15 operation Second time around

BY CHARLES ALISON RIVERA

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

Days after a bakwit school in Cebu faced the wrath of the state, seven Lumad children were reportedly flown to Davao without the consent of their parents.

This being the latest attack on Lumads under the Duterte administration, with military forces bombing their homes that were presumed to be communist breeding grounds, or driven out of their ancestral lands by private corporations exploiting the environment.

“Lumads have been forced off of their homes to make way for mining companies and plantations. Their schools have been bombed, burnt, and shot into. Because of this, schools have been set up in churches and universities across the Philippines to offer students sanctuary and a place to continue their education. Yet the attacks continue,” Save Our Schools (SOS) Network said.

Elements of Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Philippine National Police Police Regional Office-7 (PNP PRO-7), and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), with the aid of paramilitary elements of Alamara, launched a “rescue operation” last February 15.

Their supposed goal being to rescue Lumad children from being trained as child rebel soldiers in University of San Carlos (USC) Talamban Campus in Cebu City. From this, 26 unarmed Lumad students and elders, and even teachers were left terrified rather than safe.

“The police and DSWD claimed they were “rescuing” the Lumad children, as they brought parents all the way from Talaingod to Cebu. But from whom are they being rescued from?” SOS Network said in their latest update today, explaining that even now, they still have no word where the 25 Bakwit School constituents are.

Then, last February 21, of the 13 Lumad children, six were to remain with DSWD in Cebu without their parents, while the other seven were to be transported to Talaingod, Davao del Norte. All of this without any consent from their parents or paperwork, SOS Network Cebu asserted.

“Being vanguards of the child rights and welfare, we are taking this concern with utmost prudence and making it a top priority until the children will be turned over to proper individuals,” the network affirmed.

Although the Children’s Legal Bureau (CLB) were tapped by the parents of the seven to intervene and aid SOS Network Cebu, the flight still proceeded as scheduled.

“We assert once again that without a court order, written parents’ consent, or the presence of their parents, the DSWS, DSWD, WCPD-PNP, and Talaingod LGU and LSWDO have no legal authority to transfer the children!”

Among the 26 detained was UP Diliman graduate and human rights activist volunteer Chad Booc. More recognized as a volunteer for Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV) Lumad school, Booc endured several times being branded as a communist or a terrorist on social media prior to his arrest. He was one of the petitioners working against the Terror Law. This was not his first being detained, however, as Booc was put behind bars in 2017 after he and seven other individuals protested against the extension of Martial Law in Mindanao during a congressional session on the Marawi siege. They were charged with “disturbance of proceedings” under Article 144 of the Revised Penal Code.

National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL), who will stand as the legal counsel of the Lumad 26, said that numerous charges will be filed against the arrested individuals, including “kidnapping and serious illegal detention” under Republic Act (RA) 7610 (Protection on Children Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act) and RA 9208 (Anti-Human Trafficking Act of 2003).

Recently, Booc, alongside Roshelle Porcadilla, Benito Bay-ao, Segundo Milong, Jomar Benag, Esmelito Oribawan (six others also detained from the raid) were being charged with “illegal detention and kidnapping.” This was according to SOS Network Cebu’s update last February 17.

S.O.S. The so-called “rescue operation” came to the surprise of Societas Verbi Divini (SVD) Philippines Southern Province Chapter who were the ones to give shelter and necessities to the Bakwits situated within Cebu City during this COVID-19 pandemic.

In a joint statement, they and the USC administration “clarified surrounding facts” in relation to the raid yesterday. SVD hosted 42 Bakwit in their retreat houses that are accessible near the USC Talamban Campus on March 11 back in 2020. They were supposed to complete their modular learning by April 3.

On March 13, 2020, the Cebu City local government unit (LGU) placed restrictions in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19, thus barring the Lumad community from returning to their indigenous homes. Since then, the SVD sheltered the Lumad community and provided their necessities and facilities.

The SVD and USC condemned the said raid that involved the presence of the state forces.

“While the Archdiocese of Cebu-Commission on Social Advocacies mentioned that some parents were coming over to fetch their children, it did not dawn on us that the parents’ visit will necessitate the presence of policemen,” the statement reads.

The joint statement also proved that the

A lawyer from the National Union of People’s Lawyers talks to detained human rights activist Chad Booc, one of 26 arrested in Cebu City last week. PHOTO FROM SOS NETWORK CEBU

Universal condemnation We assert once again that the PNP has no legal authority to transfer the children!

S AV E O U R S C H O O L S N E T W O R K Statement

Here, no rescue need ever be conducted because the presence of the Lumads... was for their welfare S O C I E TA S V E R B I D I V I N I & UNIVERSITY OF SAN CARLOS Statement

Lumad community living within their vicinity is well-treated and cared for, hence, the term ‘rescue’ is not appropriate.

“Here, no rescue need ever be conducted because the presence of the Lumads in the retreat house was for their welfare and well-being, and all throughout [their stay], they were nurtured, cared for, and treated with their best interest in mind,” they said.

Meanwhile, SOS Network condemned the continued involvement of the United States of America’s government in local affairs.

“Obama, Trump, and now Biden have shifted the “War on Terror” to the shores of the Philippines, which has in turn intensified the accusations of terrorism on indigenous, activist, religious, and educational entities like Lumad schools.”

“The real acts of terror have been committed by the Philippine government and sponsored by the US,” the group explained, asking for willing individuals to donate to Lumad advocacy groups and to remain updated on developments.

UPLB NEWS

U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G/ E L B I | F E B R UA RY 2 6, 2 02 1

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PNP’s lies over agreement bared Chancellor Camacho debunks PNP’s report of partnership; campus remains off-limits from police and military

BY J OA QU I N G O N Z A L E Z

USC Chairperson Jainno Bongon during a rally against the abrogation of the UPDND Accord. The USC has criticized the PNP over its meeting with UPLB officials.

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

Last January 29, Philippine National Police (PNP) posted about a partnership with the UPLB administration. This was after Chancellor Jose Camacho, Jr. and other UPLB officials visited the Laguna Police Provincial Office (LPPO). Key points from the post included the crafting of memorandums for a February 2021 program known as “UPLB Ko, Bantay Ko” and an “Off-Campus Graduate Program on Strategic Planning and Development Management” for certain LPPO personnel.

PNP then claimed that they are ready to help curtail criminal, drug, or insurgency-related activities. However, Camacho himself immediately said that no such deal took place.

He emphasized that the visit was to assert the UP-DND Accord following Department of National Defense’s (DND) abrogation. He later said that the campus remained prohibited from police in a separate statement.

The Accord is an agreement between the university and DND that would restrict campus grounds to any state agents, from police officers to soldiers, to assure that academic freedom was upheld.

[P] PHOTO BY DIANNE SANCHEZ

Fact-checking PNP’s claims A day prior to the post, the UPLB website posted an in-depth report regarding the meeting. In it, the UPLB administration, together with the Laguna Police Provincial Office (LPPO), as well as Gov. Ramil Hernandez and Rep. Ruth Mariano-Hernandez discussed attempts at “strong community relations at the provincial level.”

It is noticeable, however, that the report did not reference the PNP at all, with the UPF and the LPPO being the only “police” mentioned. The report said that UPLB Ko, Bantay Ko is a 2012 information and security training program done with LB police and its local government unit (LGU). It said that this was among the possible activities being discussed to fulfill the agenda.

Seminars for drug awareness, and training sessions for investigations and arrests were mentioned, much like in PNP’s post, but are revealed to be more for the UPF and not for the UPLB community. Such events would be spearheaded by the LPPO instead. While PNP said

How can we trust the PNP if they would continue occurrences of misinformation, redtagging, and harassment?

UNIVERSITY FRESHMEN COUNCIL Statement

that it was agreed to have quarterly or emergency meetings with LPPO, LB Police, and barangay chairpersons working around campus, there was no mention of this in the report.

The idea of a “Off-Campus Graduate Program on Strategic Planning and Development Management” also had a different context in the report, in that the administration was merely inviting LPPO staff to try the program. There was also nothing to suggest that a proposal for a memorandum of agreement (MOA) was in the cards.

Finally, Camacho explained that this support of the local police’s “mobile capability” pertained to a gas assistance program that began in the term of then-Chancellor Rex Victor Cruz,

with the report mentioning a “gasoline ration” for LB police and Sangguniang Barangays.

Camacho said that this was for swift emergency responses, after the murders of Given Grace Cebanico and Ray Bernard Peñaranda .

Peñaranda, an agriculture student, was held-up then stabbed to death near UPLB in 2012, while Given Grace Cebanico was a UPLB computer science student who was raped and killed also near campus grounds in October 2011.

ONLINE

uplbperspective.org For more details, read the complete story on our website http://bit.ly/PNPUPLB

As pandemic continues siege, Feb Fair goes virtual for the first time

BY RUBEN BELMONTE

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

Instead of a weeklong festivity of cheers, stage lights, and shawarma, the annual Feb Fair will be a single livestream due to the pandemic.

The performances, political advocacies, and other related events and segments won’t be happening in the Freedom Park’s stage this year. Instead, for one day only, this year’s UPLB February Fair will be streamed through Facebook Live on the event’s page, this February 28, from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

“Due to the unfortunate circumstances brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic,

this year’s Feb Fair will have a different approach. We will be implementing and celebrating the said event in an online setting and all performances, as well as political advocacies, will happen on a single day,” UPLB All Student Councils’ Assembly (ASCA) said in a promotional letter.

The theme will be “Balik-Tanaw,” with the event aiming to reflect on the event’s roots through the “striking similarities to the socio political [sic] climate of today” and the events that lead to the creation of Feb Fair.

UPLB ASCA, who has been hosting the said event since September 1972, decided to push through such an event to continue half a century-long tradition. The beneficiaries for this

year’s Feb Fair will be the UPLB students who will need assistance for the incoming semester of AY 2020-2021.

Additionally, some annual activities such as the singing competition Star in Carillion, hosted by UPLB Development Communicators’ Society, Inc. (DCS), will be held online on February 27.

Titled “SIC 18 Natatangi Ka: A Benefit Concert,” his event will function more as a benefit concert, in cooperation with Christian Foundation for Persons with Disabilities, Inc. Beginning as a protest fair when the Marcos regime declared Martial Law in the 70s, becoming what is said to be the first mass gathering in the country, Feb Fair was originally

held in September as a way of expressing dissent against the 14-years of dictatorship and the worsening state of the country up until today.

The UPLB ASCA’s hosting of the event was due “in line with the student councils’ mandate to develop social awareness and responsibility geared towards the development of a nationalistic spirit rooted in democratic principles.”

The annual celebration caters mostly to the Southern Tagalog audience and consists of not just a lineup of performances and band guests, but also local exhibitions and stagings of different student organizations as well as advocacy campaigns in between.

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S O U T H E R N TA GA LO G

F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 |

U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G/S T N E WS

Oppression in Hacienda Yulo persists More Hacienda Yulo homes ransacked, residents harassed by ‘hired goons’ as farmers hold ground against onslaught

BY RUBEN BELMONTE

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

‘Hired goons’ continue their Hacienda Yulo alleged demolition derby, with more homes destroyed and more farmers harassed.

Hacienda Yulo sees a second wave of attacks from ‘hired goons’ of the Yulo clan and the Ayala Corporation. This was only the latest development in a decades-long battle against institutionalized land grabbing and land use conversion, and the most recent among a barrage that began in early January. Yulo farmers and residents themselves have been calling for land reform in Hacienda Yulo and against institutionalized land grabbing and land use conversion since the 90s.

For farmer and resident Shirley Marasigan, she had to witness two goons drawing their guns on her two daughters’ heads and forcing them to lie on the ground. One of the men had a gasoline container and the other took their cell phone. “Walang awa nilang binuhusan ang loob ng aking pamamahay ng dalawang galong gasolina. Nakiusap ako sa kanila na baka pwede po kaming maglabas ng gamit... hindi sila pumayag sabay duro samin at sumigaw ang isang lalaki ng ‘labas, dapa!’” Marasigan recalled.

Resident and Samahan ng mga Magsasakang Nagkakaisa sa Buntog (SAMANA-Buntog)

member Jojo De Leon recalled his experience in a press conference held with Defend Yulo Farmers. “Noong Janaury 26 sa bahay namin, nagpunta ang mga goons — trenta [30] katao — kasama ang Seraph Agency. Nakita ko ang mga kapatid ko, pinsan, at mga taga-roon, ay anim po ang binugbog nila,” De Leon said.

De Leon was among the many residents who had to witness his home be burned to a crisp last January 19. “Noong February 2, nagtangka po ang mga taong simbahan na magdala ng relief. Gutom na po ang mga mamamayan sa Sitio Buntog. Hanggang ngayon ay hirap na hirap magdala ng pagakain doon dahil hinaharang nila,” De Leon said.

This referred to a relief goods team composed of 18 church workers who were on their way to the Hacienda Yulo community of Sitio Buntog, Brgy. Canlubang in Calamba. Tanggol Magsasaka Timog Katagalugan explained that the 18 only sought to provide food and assistance to the farmers and residents, but a food blockade barred them from going any further.

De Leon, revealed by Defend Yulo Farmers to be the farmer who had his hand crushed by a gate’s closing in the dialogue with the Calamba municipality last Mendiola Massacre commemoration, concluded that it was difficult for all of them to accept what they have been struggling against, emphasizing how the ordeals have left the farmers traumatized.

MAS PINAAGA NA ANG PINAKAMAINIT NA BALITAAN SA SOUTHERN TAGALOG!

The remains of Leo Mangubat’s house in Hacienda Yulo, after it was reportedly trashed by armed men. PHOTO FROM DEFEND YULO FARMERS FACEBOOK

Manggagawa ng Nissan, umaaray sa pagsasara ng pabrika sa Sta. Rosa NI CARLA DELA CRUZ

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

TUWING SABADO

10:00 AM

LIVE SA SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS NG PERSPECTIVE

MAGSULAT. MAGLINGKOD. MAGPALAYA.

Isa pang pagawaan ng sasakyan ay nagsara sa Sta. Rosa, Laguna, at sa ngayo’y wala paring konretong plano mula sa pamamahala ng Nissan. Ngayong darating na buwan ng Marso, 133 na manggagawa ng Nissan Philippines Inc. ang inaasahang mawawalan ng trabaho dahil sa pagsasara ng lokal na planta ng Nissan sa Sta. Rosa, Laguna.

Ayon sa liham ng pangulo ng Nissan Philippines Inc. na si Atsushi Najima, napagdesiyunan nilang ituloy ang pagsasara matapos ang pag-expire ng kontrata nito kasama ang kasosyo nitong Filipino vehicle assembly na Univation Motor Philippines Inc. (UMPI).

Ayon sa labor center na Pagkakaisa ng Manggagawa sa Timog Katagalugan-Kilusang Mayo Uno (PAMANTIK-KMU), ang malawakang tanggalan sa mga manggagawa ay dahil “tali ang ekonomiya ng bansa sa dayuhang pamumuhunan, kapital at industriya.”

Dagdag ng PAMANTIK-KMU, lalawig pa ang kawalan ng trabaho sa bansa gawa ng pinaplanong full foreign ownership ng mga kumpanya sa bansa sa ilalim ng administrasyong Duterte.

Tinatayang 4.5 milyong Pilipino ano ang nawalan ng trabaho sa taong 2020. Naabot din sa taon gito ang pinakamataas na unemployment rate ng bansa sa loob ng 15 taon, na umaabot sa 10.4 porsyento. Sa kabila ng pagbaba ng unemployment rate, tumatayaang 3.8 milyong Pilipino pa rin ang walang trabaho. Inapela din ng PAMANTIK-KMU ang

pagbibigay ng sapat na ayuda para sa mga manggagagawa ng Nissan.

Isang beses lamang nakatanggap ng ayuda na nagkakahalagang P5,000 ang mga nasabing manggagawa. Ang Kagawaran ng Paggawa at Empleo (DOLE) ay nagbibigay ng one-time cash assistance para sa mga manggagawang natanggal ng trabaho sa ilalim ng kanilang COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP).

Tiniyak naman ng pamunuan ng Nissan Philippines Inc. sa Kagawaran ng Kalakalan at Industriya (DTI) na mabibigyan ng makatwirang kompensasyon ang lahat ng manggagawang apektado ng pagsasara ng planta at tutulungan din silang makahanap ng trabaho sa parehong sektor.

Sa kasalukuyan, ay wala pang inilalabas na pormal na pahayag ang kumpanya tungkol sa kanilang pagsasara at sa mga benepisyong nasasaklaw ng “reasonable compensation package” para sa mga mangagawa.

Pangatlo ang lokal na planta ng Nissan sa Sta. Rosa, Laguna sa mga pagawaan ng sasakyan na nagsara sa lalawigan sa loob ng tatlong taon, kasunod ng Isuzu noong 2019 at Honda noong 2020. Sa Honda kamakailan nagtagumpay ang mga nasisanteng mangagawa at nag-uwi ng 280% separation pay.

ONLINE

uplbperspective.org Maging updated sa mga balita sa Laguna at Southern Luzon uplbperspective.org/STnews

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U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G | F E B R UA RY 2 6, 2 02 1

26,000 indibidwal sa Quezon, nanganganib sa patuloy na pambobomba ng mga militar Mahigit isang libong puwersa ng estado ang nakakalat sa ilalim ng pinaigting na operasyon laban sa CPP-NPA-NDF NI CARLA DELA CRUZ

UPLB Perspective Staff Writer

Tinatayang 26,000 indibidwal at 15,000 pamilya sa lalawigan ng Quezon ang kasalukuyang nasa peligro buhat ng patuloy na militarisasyon ng Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). Ito ay pagkatapos ng engkwentro sa pagitan ng puwersa ng estado at New People’s Army (NPA) noong ika-5 ng Pebrero kung saan nasawi ang umano’y mataas na kumander ng NPA sa Quezon na si Ronnel Batarlo.

Ayon sa pahayag ng alyansang Tanggol Quezon, nasa higit isang libong pinagsamang pwersa ng 59th at 85th Infantry Batallion ng Philippine Army ang patuloy na nagsasagawa ng mga aerial bombing at pag-strafing kung saan higit 26,000 na katao ang apektado sa 19 na mga barangay sa lalawigan ng Quezon partikular sa mga bayan ng Lopez, Catanauan, Buenavista, Mulanay, at San Narciso.

Naninindigan din sila sa International Humanitarian Law na nararapat na protektahan laban sa iba’t ibang uri ng karahasan ang lahat ng indibidwal at siguraduhing makatao at pantay-pantay ang pagtrato sa bawat isa sa lahat ng pagkakataon.

“Civilians under the power of enemy forces must be treated humanely in all circumstances, without any adverse distinction.

They must be protected against all forms of violence and degrading treatment including murder and torture.”

Nabubuhay sa takot Kasunod ng pagpaslang kay Ronnel Batarlo na kinilala bilang kasapi ng NPA, mahigit sa 14 sundalo ang nanatili sa kanyang bahay sa Macalelon, Quezon kung saan nakaburol ang kanyang mga labi.

Labis na takot ang dala ng mga sundalo sa mga kamag-anak at indibidwal na nais lamang makiramay sa pagkamatay ni Batarlo.

Dulot ng pagpapatuloy ng operasyong militar sa iba’t ibang bahagi ng lalawigan ng Quezon ay lubhang napinsala umano ang kabuhayan ng maraming magbubukid at sibilyan.

“Lubos po kaming nababahala sa kalagayan ng mga komunidad at kabuhayan ng mga magsasaka na naapektuhan ng mga pambobomba at operasyong militar ng AFP, lalo na sa ganitong panahon na sinusubukan pa lamang nilang bumangon mula sa epekto ng pandemya at ng mahigpit na lockdown,” pahayag ni Jonabelle Almeyda, tagapagsalita ng Tanggol Quezon.

Bukod sa pinsalang dala ng mga pag-atake ng militar sa mga lupain ay isa pang panganib sa kabuhayan ng mga magsasaka ang patuloy na mga proyektong pang-imprastraktura na nakapapinsala sa kapaligiran.

Sa katimugang Quezon, nananatiling talamak ang mga proyekto tulad ng commercial logging at quarrying. Matatandaan din na sa Quezon din nagaganap ang paggawa ng kontrobersyal na Kaliwa Dam. Pinatindi umano ng pandemya ang paghihirap ng mga magsasaka sa lalawigan dahil sa mga quarantine protocol kung kaya’t hindi nila lubos na maipagpatuloy ang kanilang

Lubos po kaming nababahala sa kalagayan ng mga komunidad na naapektuhan ng mga pambobomba ng AFP, lalo na sa ganitong panahon ng lockdown.

JONABELLE ALMEYDA Tagapagsalita, Tanggol Quezon

mga kabuhayan dagdag pa ang panggugulo ng militar sa kanilang lalawigan na nagdala ng takot sa mga sibilyan at nakaabala sa kanilang paghahanap-buhay.

Patuloy na paglabag Matatandaang ang mga operasyon ng militar sa lalawigan ay nag-udyok sa ilang mga pamilya na lumikas mula sa kanilang mga komunidad, o kaya naman ang iba ay pinaghihinalaan at binabansagan bilang mga tagasuporta ng NPA. Matatandaan ang pagsampa ng gawa-gawang kaso ng attempted homicide sa kalihim-heneral ng Karapatan Quezon na si Genelyn Dichoso na nakararanas na umano ng red-tagging bago pa man naupo sa puwesto si Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte.

Bukod dito ay ang ginawang panggigipit sa pamilya ng dating miyembro ng NPA na napaslang sa Catanauan na si Eduardo “Ka Resty” Torrenueva kung saan sila ay isinailalim sa interogasyon ng mga militar sa isang covered court ngunit walang naging konkretong detalye ukol sa pagbabalik ng mga labi.

Noong Nobyembre ay iniulat ang pamamaril ng dalawang hindi pa nakikilalang salarin sa lider ng lokal na sangay ng Coco Levy Fund Ibalik sa Amin (CLAIM) na si Armando Buisan. Noon namang Disyembre, dalawa pang magsasaka na sina Ruben Istokado at Renante de Leon ang iligal na inaresto dahil sa paghihinalang sila umano ay lider ng mga rebeldeng komunista, kung saan iginigiit ng binansagang Atimonan 2 na walang katotohanan ang nasabing paratang.

Nanawagan ang Tanggol Quezon bilang isang alyansa na naglalayong itaguyod ang karapatan ng mga tao sa Quezon na wakasan ang patuloy na mapanirang operasyon ng militar sa lalawigan. Ang Tanggol Quezon ay nagtatag ng 1-araw na sesyon ng psycho-social debriefing, at ecumenical worship sa Catanauan para sa mga pamilyang nakakaranas ng pagkabalisa sanhi ng nagpapatuloy na operasyon ng militar sa kanilang mga komunidad .

“We are very much concerned on the well-being of distressed families affected by such grave events, especially in these trying times that we are just recovering from the crisis brought by the pandemic,” saad ni Almeyda.

On their way to support Karapatan Quezon sec-gen Genelyn Dichoso, the alliance reported that authorities harassed them. PHOTO FROM KARAPATAN QUEZON

HR group call to drop Karapatan Quezon sec-gen’s trumped-up homicide case Last January 28 saw calls for the immediate dismissal of Genelyn Dichoso as the Karapatan Quezon secretary general went on pre-trial for alleged attempted homicide.

“Mula sa mga iligal na pagkaka-aresto at pagkakakulong hanggang sa mga tala ng ekstrahudisyal na pamamaslang, matagumpay niya itong hinarap nang buong tapang at lakas,” Karapatan Timog Katagalugan (TK) said in a Facebook statement, recalling how Dichoso involved herself in various quick response and humanitarian efforts in Quezon.

Also going by “Tita Jen,” Dichoso, said to have been red-tagged even before Pres. Rodrigo Duterte took office, was among the eight (originally said to be nine) members of one of Karapatan’s Quick Response Team (QRT) who were held by police in Brgy. Abuyon, San Narcisco, Quezon last September 18, 2020.

Originally heading to the area to inspect possible human rights violations that took place in an alleged encounter between elements of the 85th Infantry Battalion, Philippine Army (IBPA) and the New People’s Army (NPA). They were then shocked to discover the following day, after being forced to stay in a barangay hall there overnight, that they

were being charged. This was despite not breaking any quarantine protocol.

Karapatan-TK explained that, with 13 out of 363 slayings having involved human rights workers and the constant life-threatening presence of red-tagging, it was high time to drop the “trumpedup” charges” against Dichoso.

“Sa ganitong mga numero, lumang tugtugin na ang pagsampa ng gawa-gawang kaso sa mga tulad ni Dichoso.

Walang pakundangan siyang dinawit ng mga sundalo bilang kalahok sa isang armadong engkwentro na naging daan upang masampahan siya ng kasong Attempted Homicide,” the alliance said.

Karpatan-TK explained further that Dichoso, temporarily freed to work with the alliance, distributed relief goods for those affected by the typhoons and the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Sa katunayan, abala siya kasama ang grupong Karapatan sa pamimigay ng kaunting tulong sa pamamagitan ng relief goods sa mga kababayan nating lubhang apektado ng bagyo at pandemya habang abala naman ang mga berdugong pwersang militar sa mga batbat nitong paglabag sa karapatang pantao,” Karapatan-TK said.

BY CALEB BUENALUZ

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F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 | U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G

T

hree months after Typhoon Ulysses devastated Metro Manila and several areas in Luzon, some shoreline communities along Laguna de Bay are still submerged in flood. In a November 24 Inquirer report, the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council in the CALABARZON region identified several lakeshore barangays in Laguna cities including Calamba, San Pedro, Biñan, and the municipalities of Santa Cruz and Pila to be among those still in “under-knee to waist-deep floodwater.”

The water is receding in many areas, but not totally. When Ulysses hit on November 11, Brgy. Dela Paz, Biñan, Laguna resident James Marzon took refuge on the second floor of his family’s home. With at least four steps of their staircase submerged in flood, he says it was a frightening experience because they felt like they had no control.

“Yung pagtaas, ambilis talaga niya […] so nag-start siya ng madaling araw, alas-kwatro […] talampakan pa lang yun and pagggising po hanggang alas-otso […] sa loob palang ng bahay namin yun, dibdib na siya,” he recounts.

For the residents of Brgy. Dela Paz, where streets remain in under-knee water, something of the sort has become so “normal” that almost every household has its own wooden or improvised boat as the main mode of transportation.

“Taon-taon, as in [k]onting malakas na ulan lang sa gabi […] ‘tas tuloy-tuloy hanggang umaga. Expected na po talaga na [babaha],” says Marzon. Marzon is fortunate that his family’s home is located in the central part of the barangay where elevation is a bit higher. But for the families in areas they call “laylayan” — which literally means ‘edge’ — the situation is much worse because of their proximity to the lake.

Meanwhile, the scene of flooded streets in Dela Paz is not exactly new to the residents; but in the aftermath of Ulysses, it felt different.

This time around, floodwater is murkier than ever. Streets are overwhelmed with floating garbage producing a foul odor. They say this has not always been the case.

“Ngayon kasi, may burak — kulay kanal ganun, kulay black. Tapos yung mga basura, sobrang dami na talaga. Yung mga tao din kasi, irresponsible din kasi sa basura, kaya rin siguro ganun yung nangyayari ngayon. Dahil dun sa mga basurang natatapon din ng mga tao dito,” Marzon describes.

Decades of neglect Dr. Decibel V. Faustino-Eslava, a geologist and dean of the School of Environmental Science and Management (SESAM) at the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), explains that there are several contributing factors as to why Laguna de Bay is overflowing to the communities even during light rainfall. “Ang malaking problema natin sa Laguna de [Bay], is the amount of sediments going into the lake. And that has been caused yung several decades of uncontrolled or unregulated upland development na nagde-deliver ng too much sediments and of course, garbage into the rivers and the lakes of Laguna de [Bay],” the SESAM dean says in an exclusive interview with the Perspective.

Faustino-Eslava, who is a part of a group of UP scientists conducting a study on the ecological status of the lake, compares it with a cauldron, saying “when it rains, tumatanggap ng tubig yung watersheds and they all go to the streams and to the river and into the lake.

“And the lake itself is also an open area that receives water from the skies. So dalawang pathways ng rainwater diba from the

Still no end in sight for Laguna residents who have experienced floods due to typhoon “Ulysses”.

CONTRIBUTED BY JAMES MARZON

A longtime tragedy in the making Months after Typhoon Ulysses wrecked havoc in Southern Tagalog, some communities are still flooded by water from the Laguna de Bay. We talked to a UP scientist to understand why tha lake keeps on flooding its shore communities. Special report by Dean Carlo Valmeo

watersheds and directly into the lake.”

She also notes, the lake has been experiencing “heavier sedimentation or siltation,” which made it much more shallow through the years — failing to accommodate more water.

Sedimentation happens when eroded soil, sand, clay, silt, and other solid materials settle at the bedrock of a body of water. Faustino-Eslava identifies waterways such as Pasig-Marikina river systems and the Pagsanjan river as among the highest suppliers of sediments to the lake.

“And that’s the reason why, for example, yung Dela Paz na barangay is now flooded, and is still probably flooded kasi […] mas mababaw yung lake, mas matagal pati siyang mag-flow out of the lake.”

“And it’s not just Dela Paz. All around the lake, ganyan yung sitwasyon ng coastal communities,” she explains further.

The geologist’s group is recommending regular but “pinpointed” dredging in the lake to maintain or even improve its water levels.

However, because of the size of Laguna de Bay, the negative environmental impacts it would bring as it would “disturb the sediments,” and how expensive it is to push through, she says it would be “not practical” to desilt the entire lake.

“Una, magastos mag-dredge, pangalawa, marami siyang negative environmental

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U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G | F E B R UA RY 2 6, 2 02 1

Where it all happens: Laguna Bay watershed

▲ N

16.2 million live around the Laguna Lake area, one of the great lakes in Southeast Asia. Fisheries and other business are abound, while electricity and water is also drawn from the lake. But several issues hound those who live near the area.

Watershed area

Rivers or tributaries

11.1m

RODRIGUEZ SAN MATEO

people live inside the highlighted area, while 4.2 million people live in the coasts of Laguna Lake

QUEZON CITY

MANILA

ANTIPOLO PASIG

BINANGONAN TANAY

STA. MARIA

PILILA

L

A

G

PANGIL

U

N A

JALAJALA

D E

STA. ROSA

B

AY

STA. CRUZ PILA

CALAMBA

LOS BAÑOS

NAGCARLAN

Mt. Makiling

21

Tanggalin mo man yung mga communities sa coastal areas, kailangan marelocate mo sila within the same city. ‘Wag n’yo silang itapon sa kabundukan, kung saan walang tubig, walang kuryente, walang trabaho.

D R . D E C I B E L V. FA U S T I N O - E S L AVA Geologist, UPLB SESAM

impacts, especially because you disturb the sediments. So those suggestions that we have in the book are meant to minimize the negative impacts and then maximize the benefits from dredging,” she adds.

Polluted and contaminated water Another concern for Laguna de Bay is the presence of fecal coliform or the bacteria that come from animal and human waste or sewage. Aside from supplying sediment, the 21 major tributary river systems and small streams connected to the lake also bring

900 3,820 2.2bn

in square kilometers, total surface area of Laguna Lake

in square kilometers, total area of the lake’s watershed

Levels of neglect

Suspended solids absorbs light, which can reduce photosynthesis in the area.

Normal level 30mg/L MANILA PASIG

Ammonia levels (mg/L)

Ammonia is a toxic compound that can adversely affect fish health.

Normal level 0.02mg/L Northwest Bay

MANILA

Northwest Bay

46mg/L

East Bay Area

33mg/L

PAGSANJAN

Central West Bay

54mg/L

PASIG

0.287mg/L

Sampling stations

Fecal coliform levels (MPN/100mL) When fecal matter is seen on water, it might cause a plethora of diseases.

Normal level No set criterion MANILA

Northwest Bay

147MPN/100mL East Bay Area

151MPN/100mL

PAGSANJAN

BIÑAN

High

Low

PASIG

BINANGONAN

West Bay Area

217MPN/100mL

CALAMBA LOS BAÑOS

in cubic meters, the estimated water holding capacity of the lake

Data levels

In 2012, a comprehensive report on the water quality of Laguna de Bay has shown worrying trends, especially in the amount of sediments and toxic substances in waters near cities.

Total suspended solids (mg/L)

polluted water. For Faustino-Eslava, this could only be addressed through the construction of wastewater treatment facilities in the country, especially in Metro Manila.

“Importante na bawat munisipyo merong sariling wastewater treatment plant. ‘Wag nating gawing basurahan yung lake, kasi yun yung nangyayari eh, diba?

“And there’s no effort in cleaning up the water before they enter the lake. The establishment of wastewater treatment plantsshould become a national priority.”

For the Global Environment Facility (GEF), another major problem is nutrient pollution, or the increase of nitrogen and phosphorus in a body of water that comes from household, industrial, and agricultural waste. This is detrimental to Laguna de Bay because it leads to excessive plant and algae growth and could also result in fish kills due to lack of oxygen.

“Key sources of nutrients include run-off from farmland treated with fertilizers as well as detergents and untreated sewage in domestic wastewater,” GEF wrote in 2017.

In fact, this is consistent with Dr. Faustino-Eslava’s claim that farming businesses in Rizal and Laguna have also become the “emerging pollutants” in the watersheds. She says that farmlands are recklessly draining hormones used for raising livestock directly into the lake.

The Philippines has existing environmental laws such as the Republic Act (R.A.) 9003, or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 and the R.A. 9275, or the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004, but for her, legislation is not the issue. It’s proper implementation. “May mga batas na tayo na nagsasabi kung paano natin dapat i-handle ang ating solid and liquid waste and kailangan lang ng matinding suporta para ma-implement yung mga yun,” she points out.

What now?

Taal Volcano

major tributary river systems flow into the lake

9

LOS BAÑOS

In the aftermath of Typhoon Ulysses, the Laguna Lake Development Authority announced in November 2020 that they have approved a P609-billion Build-Own-Operate (BOO) proposal for the rehabilitation and development of the Laguna de Bay. This is now under review by the National Economic and Development Authority, which will determine its fate. This means that it remains uncertain whether or not it will materialize. Not to mention, it needs to survive the national government’s years and years of bureaucracy.

For the affected residents, all they can do for now is wait. After all, relocating is not an option they could afford.

“Tanggalin mo man yung mga communities sa coastal areas, kailangan ma-relocate mo sila within the same city. ‘Wag n’yo silang itapon sa kabundukan, kung saan walang tubig, walang kuryente, walang trabaho. Because they will keep coming back,” says Faustino-Eslava, who called on the government to address the socio-economic concerns of the communities affected.

Until then, the residents of Brgy. Dela Paz and other flooded communities will have to keep on paddling their boats and go on with their daily lives. “Wala na po talagang magagawa ‘yun pong mga kabahayan,” Marzon told the Perspective.

South Bay Area

200MPN/100mL LOS BAÑOS

[P] LIVE

New timeslot, Saturdays at 10 a.m.

SOURCE LAGUNA LAKE DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY RESEARCH & INFOGRAPHIC DESIGN DEAN CARLO VALMEO & IAN RAPHAEL LOPEZ

Watch this report with additional interviews and on-ground footage http://bit.ly/LagunaLake

10

FEATURES

P

risoners are not solitary cases as these individuals also have backgrounds that intersect with other vulnerable groups. At only 11 years old, Jerry was sent to a youth detention center for breaking curfew because he was trying to escape from his abusive parents. He endured incidents of sexual abuse while inside the detention center.

Nearly 10 percent of all prisoners are women and children. Some have been imprisoned at the age of sixteen, some have grown past sixty in prison. Many live below the poverty line, and countless families experience the difficulty of having a convicted family member. In extreme cases, prisoners also find themselves abused and mistreated by the same people who are supposed to guide them to rehabilitation.

The moment detainees enter prison, many of their basic human rights are either lost or suspended; one of which is that they lose their right to mobility because our jails hold way beyond its capacity. Inside the Manila City Jail, 500 prisoners are packed in an area meant only for 170 individuals. Prisoners have to take turns in resting in this cramped area, let alone sit down.

The government’s lack of support prevents prisoners from accessing needed medical services and proper nutrition. They are allotted a maximum of P35 for three meals a day. However it is projected to be lower due to overcrowding and the so-called “bureaucratic red tape.”

Detainees depend on donations that often overflow during the holidays and not much more after. Prisons in the Philippines rarely follow the global standards set by the United Nations (UN); current protocols don’t even obey the standards mandated by our national government.

According to a report by the World Prison Brief (WPB) in November 2019, there are 215,000 inmates nationwide. The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), in its 2020 budget, allocated roughly P19,000 for each inmate. With the ongoing pandemic, it is expected that the government should further assist inmates and jail aides but the proposed budget for BuCor was capped at P3.7 billion for the year 2021 from its previous budget of P4.24 billion in 2020. This means that for 2021, the budget for every prisoner is at P17,200 maximum. In comparison, the cost of living for one individual in Quezon City, assuming they do not pay rent, is P24,000, monthly.

“Bahala silang mamatay. Pabayaan mo lang sila,” were the words of a prison guard to a medical aide after the latter informed him of a sick detainee. This was from an account by an elderly man from the Quezon City Jail. Even before the pandemic, prisons already had a large death rate, nearly three dead persons per day.

Many prisoners were elderly with histories of tuberculosis endemic in most prisons in the country. These cramped spaces are a hotbed for COVID-19 transmission and the health protocols imposed outside, in compliance with RA No. 11332, are nowhere to be found inside. No mass testing was implemented even after nine deaths were attributed to COVID-19.

Many prisoners have a history of lung and heart complications but they are kept in very enclosed spaces with inadequate resources.

No medical aid, no mass testing. Lowering the budget of the BuCor is a death sentence not only for prisoners, but also for employees who are exposed to the virus and are in dire need of financial and medical assistance.

If even before the pandemic, prisons across the country, especially those located in the National Capital Region (NCR), already have increasing death rates due to overcrowding and lack of basic necessities for its inmates, how about now that we have a pandemic that could kill even those who are equipped and healthy?

F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 | U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G

ABANDONED GUESTS OF THE STATE Our society consists of several vulnerable groups: women, youth, farmers, workers, and the poor to name some. They are considered at risk due to exploitation and discrimination committed by the elite. Among these groups, there is one that is less discussed.

By Giancarlo Morrondoz

O

FEATURES

U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G | F E B R UA RY 2 6, 2 02 1

f the 215,000 inmates mentioned earlier, an overwhelming percentage of 75.1% of the whole prison population are considered as pre-trial detainees. These are prisoners who are remanded or detained during criminal investigations and are set for eventual trial. In 2013, Frank* was arrested for the murder of a policeman, a charge he fervently denied. While he was being interrogated at the police station, he was severely beaten and tortured by ten cops who kept accusing him of the said murder.

Ironically, the charges filed by the police was not of homicide or murder but that of illegal trafficking of drugs and firearms, charges that typically have instances of planted evidence.

Remand prisoners could be kept in a cell for months or even years and some are coerced to admit to their charges even without substantial evidence. Torture and violence on pre-trial detainees are also common, stripping them of their right to a fair trial.

Many detainees usually cannot afford to hire lawyers, and in many cases, there is not even a nearby and available judge for their trials. These people are defenseless and left with barely any alternatives. Pre-trial detainees wait an average of nine months before they are granted a trial. Prison cells are made to house convicts and are supposed to be temporary residences for pre-trial detainees, but many of these detainees stay for months, if not, years, due to intensified bureaucracy in our justice system.

In most countries, pre-trial detainees only constitute a minority of the prison population.

It is considered as a last resort reserved only for exceptional cases, like those who are likely to escape or to commit more crimes if not hastily detained. The Philippines, along with many other developing countries such as Brazil, Thailand, and India, have a high percentage of pre-trial detainees between inmates.

The UN set countermeasures that should be implemented to lessen pre-trial detainment. Measures including, but not limited to, prompt information about the arrest, trial without delay, separation of pre-trial detainees and juveniles from convicted prisoners.

These are all measures that the Philippines and many other developing countries have not yet applied or are ineffective at doing so. Laws like the Speedy Trial Act were enacted in 1998 to reduce pre-trial detainees and the prison population, yet its percentage only continues to rise.

The slow processing of trials and the large percentage of prisoners primarily composed of pre-trial detainees are all symptoms of a flawed justice system, one that does not ensure genuine justice and equality. It does not ensure the fairness of law for women, many of whom are already facing an uphill battle at court due to a history of discriminatory laws found in our Labor Code and Revised Penal Code. Sexual abuse in jails is also widespread, despite the introduction of laws which safeguard prisoners inside detention centers, such as the Prison Rape Elimination Act. In 2018, the Supreme Court (SC) reported that courts in the Philippines resolved more cases than what they initially aimed for. The SC disposed of nearly 50% more cases above its target. Although courts were comparatively more productive, why are there still over 160,000 detainees who are not yet granted their trial?

This is due to a huge backlog of cases, some of which are already a decade old; the problem lies in the inconsistency of the judicial courts from term to term. In 2016, during the first year of Duterte’s presidency, there was a

WORSENING CONDITIONS FOR FILIPINO PRISONERS

gathering for a birthday party are slapped on the wrist. Senator Koko Pimentel endangered many patients in the Makati Medical Center, by breaking the same laws, but he was able to walk away without any repercussions.

Noli*, an old fishmonger, was violently arrested, fined, humiliated, and detained for four days for not wearing a face mask while he was trying to earn a living to feed his family. His wife was forced to borrow P2,000 from a “5-6 lender” in order to pay the police in exchange for Noli’s freedom.

Even the pandemic couldn’t stop the continued neglect for prisoners, with their dire situation being exacerbated since 2016 by the decline in the rule of law brought by the Duterte regime.

E Congested to the brim The Philippines has the worst occupancy rates for prisoners in Asia, at 463%.

Low

High

No data

350,000

300,000

250,000

200,000

Fast facts

Getting unfair as time goes on

Since the Duterte administration started in 2016, the number of detained prisoners yet to be put into trial has increased.

Total prisoners

THE TOLL OF NEGLECT

Pres.

Duterte takes office

75.1%

Pre-detained ones 150,000

100,000

Pres. Arroyo elected in ‘04

Pres. Aquino elected in ‘10

50,000

0

2002

2006

2010

2014

2018

MONEY TALKS IN PRISON

P17k

of all prisoners in the country have yet to go into trial for their charges (See left)

How much the government will spend for a single prisoner’s needs for a whole year

5,200

13%

inmates die annually due to factors exacerbated by squalid jail conditions

drop in Bureau of Corrections’ budget, from P4.4 billion to P3.7 billion

SOURCE WORLD PRISON BRIEF RESEARCH & INFOGRAPHIC DESIGN IAN RAPHAEL LOPEZ

sharp increase in backlog cases, likely due to upheavals in courts and the administration’s newly-executed war on drugs. The inefficiency of our courts is only augmented by poor administrative policies and its innate bureaucracy, but the broken and disorganized system already existed years ago.

The police are usually under pressure to produce results. This is due to incentives set by the Duterte administration for the arrests, murder and execution of criminals, regardless of conviction. The investigative process is also jeopardized leading to errors and the arrest of individuals, many of which are people who are below the poverty line and uninformed in the judicial process. Some are arrested using extorted confessions with the promise of financial assistance and a swift release.

After these prisoners serve their time, rehabilitated, and once again a free citizen, discrimination against them does not stop there.

Their history as an “ex-convict” hangs on to them even after their release. There were cases of ex-convicts receiving less pay despite working decently. Back in 2019, prisoners who were released early on good behavior were intimidated to turn themselves back in due to an ultimatum issued by Duterte, with those who do not cooperate to be arrested. Despite

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U N D E R O U R CU R R E N T S TATE O F A F FA I RS , AC TI V I S M A N D O PP OS ITI O N I S CO N S I D E R E D A C R I M E , TH E D I S FAVO R E D A R E E ITH E R O PPR E SS E D O R S I LE N CE D US I N G O U R V E RY OW N CO N S TIT U TI O N . prisoners’ efforts, reform is actively discouraged and considered to be impossible.

Duterte’s infamous willingness to breach existing laws also undermines an already impotent justice system. His war on drugs alone has produced tens of thousands of victims, many of which are undocumented.

The poverty-stricken residents of Sitio San Roque requesting for financial aid, amidst the pandemic, were violently arrested and fined for allegedly breaching quarantine protocols.

Meanwhile, police officers who held a mass

ven after conviction, biases and special treatments for affluent and powerful prisoners still pervade.

Zaldy Ampatuan was convicted for 57 counts of murder for the Maguindanao Massacre, but was allowed a furlough back in 2018 to attend his daughter’s wedding. Ina Nasino was only given three hours to attend her six month-old baby’s funeral. 43 armed guards even guarded her throughout her furlough. The difference between the two cases is that the latter is seen as a political prisoner, or individuals who are imprisoned due to their opposing political beliefs. Political prisoners are continuously denied these rights, even in life or death situations.

Marcos Aggalao, 74-year-old peace pact holder of the Salegseg tribe was refused to be released, despite suffering dementia and pneumonia. He died on September 17, 2017 and suffered three strokes while incarcerated. Meanwhile, Atty. Gigi Reyes, detained for being linked to the pork barrel scam and other plunder charges, was temporarily released by courts to have a dental appointment back in 2015.

Former Calauan Mayor Antonio Sanchez has a sizeable room with amenities and could even continue his criminal operations despite the heinous crimes of rape and murder he committed to two students from the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) back in the 1990s. He was slated to be released this 2020 because former BuCor chief Nicanor Faeldon asserted that Sanchez was covered by the guidelines set under RA No. 10592 or the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law.

Our judiciary system is said to be focused on retribution rather than reform. However, while this is true for the impoverished, time in prison for the wealthy is treated as a chance for redemption and rehabilitation.

For the marginalized, it serves as retribution for being cemented in poverty, defenseless.

With the ongoing clamor for the reinstatement of the death penalty as a retributive measure, the need for reform in our judicial and penal system is apparent. Because when our laws are built perfectly in favor of the privileged, the masses are left to suffer.

It is well within our rights to demand accountability from the government as well as an efficient and fair judicial process because the deteriorating rights of prisoners is a reflection of a corrupt and faulty system. Especially with the enacted Anti-Terrorism Law, along with its vague provisions, anyone is at risk of imprisonment.

The law should be able to defend the disadvantaged, help the helpless, and safeguard the vulnerable. Because without justice, genuine democratic freedom and peace cannot be obtained.

ONLINE

uplbperspective.org For more details, read the complete story on our website bit.ly/AbandonedGuests

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What Build, Build, Build truly destroys

With a little more than a year left in office, the Duterte administration is keen on cementing BBB as its ultimate legacy. But at what cost?

By Aron Sierva

D

efinitely, the airport city project is a part of the government’s Destruct-Destruct-Destruct scheme that primarily caters to business interests and conveniently leaves out genuine development prospects for the people,” Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) Bulacan had this to say regarding the New Manila International Airport (NMIA).

As claimed by San Miguel Corporation (SMC), which was awarded the franchise to construct the P738 billion project, the airport would apparently contribute to the improvement of Philippine transportation, while bringing “unprecedented level of growth” to Bulacan.

But because the said airport will be constructed along the coastal areas of Bulacan, fisherfolk fear losing their livelihood, brought by displacement and the environmentally-damaging construction. Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA) - Bulacan expressed their worries and disappointment, saying that development must not come at the expense of their lives.

The problem brought by harmful infrastructure development, however, is not exclusive to Bulacan, as it extends to the whole country. The NMIA only constitutes the tip of the iceberg under the Duterte administration’s flagship infrastructure project, the Build! Build! Build! (BBB) Program.

As soon as he assumed the presidency, Duterte promised a better economy for the Philippines. Bannering BBB as his centerpiece project economic-wise, Duterte aims for this initiative to “usher the golden age of infrastructure in the Philippines.” In this project, 52.1% are railways, 27.3% are bridges and roads, 8% are airports, 5.2% are mass transit, and 1.6% are seaports.

Approved last June 4, House Bill No. 6815, also known as Accelerated Recovery and Investments Stimulus for the Economy of the Philippines (ARISE Philippines), is a P1.3 trillion package that is to be utilized to restore the country’s economy that was severely affected by the pandemic. Ironically, the bill centers the country’s funds on infrastructure programs.

With a little more than a year left in office, the Duterte administration is keen on cementing BBB as its ultimate legacy, so much that the lion’s share of the funds meant for the pandemic response is to be spent on infrastructure projects, setting apart P650 billion for the said program.

Fair enough, part of the general description of the infrastructure programs include the construction of modern health facilities and public school clinics. However, this has yet to be given a detailed breakdown, and the health sector seems to be excluded from the said bill.

Contrary to their “plans”, there haven’t been major constructions of hospitals and health facilities to aid in the suppression of the virus.

In truth, the percentage of health budget prioritization has declined in the past years.

According to IBON Foundation, a development and research organization, the health sector budget’s overall share in the national budget has fallen from 4.9% in 2019 to 4.5% in 2020.

Moreover, numerous minimum wage earners and informal sector workers fail to receive medical attention, brought by costly health services, and unavailability of health facilities in remote

PHOTO FROM PHILIPPINE NEWS AGENCY

A debt trap Because of the enormity of the projects, about P1 trillion of funding would be sourced for official development assistance (ODAs).

Others

8.17% ODAs

12.9% PPPs

16.5%

Traditional mode of procurement

63.2%

SOURCE NEDA DESIGN IAN RAPHAEL LOPEZ

areas. Health workers themselves are even calling out for more reasonable assistance, saying that the low COVID-19 Special Risk Allowance (SRA) and Actual Hazard Duty Pay (AHDP) are adding “insult to the dignity” of frontliners risking their lives amidst a health crisis. It should be worth noting that while the

government is busy finding a solution to “solve” the ongoing recession, its citizens, who themselves must be the primary beneficiaries to economic growth, are suffering, if not dying, from a substandard yet costly healthcare system.

T

wo years into Duterte’s administration, the country’s real gross domestic product (GDP) had registered a total increase of 11.3%. At first glance, it seems to prove the government’s claim of a growing economy through its flagship projects. Looking deeper, however, we find that in NCR alone, this economic growth was actually driven not by government programs, but by rising labor productivity. As presented by IBON, productivity increased by 12.7% in two years.

To put it in a different perspective, the economic growth that the country enjoyed at the time being is attributed to Filipino workers, who are still deprived of justifiable wages to answer their most basic needs. Despite the labor situation being worsened by the pandemic, the government is still convinced that raising our economy would best be done through furthering infrastructure spending. However, as Gabe Alpert wrote for Investopedia, “Construction spending tends to peak years after a project is started. In this case, the large multiplier effect associated with this kind of spending can be

counterproductive, exaggerating rather than smoothing out economic cycles.” After a recession, spending must be quick in order to multiply its effect. Therefore, funds should be directed towards financial distribution among low-income households, who are expected to spend eagerly for their basic needs after they have been financially challenged by the pandemic.

Infrastructure projects increase deficit spending, leading to unsustainable government debt.

As a matter of fact, data from the Bureau of Treasury (BOT) show that as of August 2020, the Philippines’ outstanding debt amounted to P9.615 trillion. Because of the pandemic, the government expects a debt-to-GDP ratio of 54%, which indicates the decreasing ability of our country to pay off our debts. Needless to say, the money that will be used to pay off such amounts comes in the form of taxes, which further burden the masses. It comes with anti-poor laws such as the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law (TRAIN) Law, which increases the prices of basic goods and services, further “exacerbating” poverty and our market’s already inflated prices.

I

nfrastructure projects tend to attract thieves,” said Ralf Rivas, a finance correspondent from Rappler. Directly emphasizing the point, he added that infrastructure projects have been historically plagued with corruption. These statements

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can be quantitatively expressed through a presentation by the Research, Education, and Institutional Development Foundation (REID), an organization of economic solution experts.

Providing a breakdown of the average expenses of a construction firm, the organization presented a graph that showed 15% to 35% of the expenses that were allegedly spent on “other costs of doing the business” - which, according to REID Foundation, represents the budget allocated for corruption. Some contractors even complain that it is the politicians themselves who demand such “fees.”

In addition to being a tool for corruption, infrastructure programs also seem to serve as a doorway for neocolonialists, given that numerous projects are funded by foreign entities.

In fact, just three years into Duterte’s term, the Philippine government has already obtained 8.47 billion dollars from external financing.

Kaliwa Dam, for instance, is funded by none other than the Republic of China. The loan agreement signed by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) awarded the Export-Import Bank of China (EXIMBANK) to finance the P10.4 billion water source.

According to Atty. Maria Cristina Yambot of the National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL), prioritizing a Chinese bank for the dam construction violates the Filipino First Policy, comprehensively stated in Article XII, Section 10 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution.

Infrastructure funding has also eaten up the agricultural and fisheries sector’s share, which is only to be given an assistance of P66 billion, despite being severely affected by the recent pandemic. Redo Peña, a farmer from San Jose del Monte, Bulacan said, “The strict lockdown crippled us...it is difficult to survive. Many of us only have a handful of our produce.”

Filipino farmers and fishermen have been receiving little to no assistance. What they have been receiving, instead, are threats of land-grabbing and militarization, as well as other forms of harassment. Only a few months back, there were burning of fishermen’s houses in Cavite; demolition of a fisher community in Batangas and farmers’ houses in Bataan; and the recent harassment suffered by Hacienda Yulo farmers, which included demolition and arson, amidst issues of land-grabbing.

Despite these problems, lawmakers continue to prioritize infrastructure projects in our budget. It is even worsened by policies such as the Rice Tariffication Law which jeopardizes farmers’ jobs due to increased importation, while violating their rights and access to resources.

In addition to the agonies of farmers and fishermen, other marginalized families lament a high cost of living all the while a health and economic crisis. In a survey by the Social Weather Station (SWS), they found that 4.2 million Filipino families were involuntarily hungry just from the early months of the pandemic. While millions of poverty-stricken families starve, National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) Acting Secretary Karl Chua said, “There’s no point in giving subsidies if families can’t even go out and spend.”

To the government’s defense, data from the DPWH showed that BBB had generated 4 million jobs from 2016 to 2019. However, behind what is seemingly an excellent improvement in the labor sector is the persisting exploitation of companies on their employees, a situation worsened by the government’s minimal interference to raise the socioeconomic state of workers. The National Capital Region’s (NCR) nominal minimum wage remains at only P537, while other regions suffer lower rates like in Southern Tagalog, which is valued at P373 despite today’s living conditions. Besides the state’s neglect, BBB is

Duterte’s infra bonanza: Is it still worth it?

also infamous for degrading the environment and threatening numerous Filipino residents of displacement. A testament to this notoriety is the Kaliwa Dam, construction of which was established in order to “meet the increasing water demand of residents”.

What was overlooked, however, are the detrimental consequences of the dam’s construction on both the residents and on the environment.

According to Advocates of Science and Technology for the People (AGHAM), building Kaliwa Dam would lead to deforestation, biodiversity loss, loss of food source, decreased rainfall, flooding, and landslides. Moreover, it would displace the indigenous Dumagat and Remontado tribes, which rely heavily on the mountainous regions for their livelihood and survival.

According to the Forest Management Bureau, forest-covered areas have fallen to only 23% of the Philippines’ total land area, which is considered an “environmentally-critical level.” On the other hand, as per the Bureau of Soil and Water Management, 71% of the country’s land area is severely degraded. This environmental damage, as pointed out by IBON Foundation, is mainly caused by governmental infrastructure projects such as BBB.

NCR projects

One of the purported legacies of the current regime is its “Build! Build! Build!” project. It was designed to be ambitious in scope, but reality bites and the pandemic happened. Is it still what the country needs after reeling from the government’s mishandling of the crisis?

P12.2b

Cost of New Centennial Water Project or Kaliwa Dam

Map of projects Rail & urban transport Bus rapid transport Air transport

P2.3t

Road transport Major ports

P965b

Nationwide investment target by NEDA in BBB, 2017-22

Irrigation Water

Cost of Build, Build, Build projects in the National Capital Region alone

Flood management

Sector breakdown of infra targets

T

According to NEDA’s projections, transport projects under the BBB has the lion’s share of investments.

Others

6% Water resources

Transport

64.2%

12%

P574b

Projected BBB project cost in Visayas and Mindanao

Social infra

13%

The infrastructure myth

Duterte’s talking heads have often trumpeted how infrastructure projects will push the country’s economy into greater heights. But a study from IBON Foundation shows otherwise.

GDP growth and labor productivity growth, 2010-2020 (%)

GDP

Labor productivity

10 8

Pres. Aquino takes office

2020

Pres. Duterte takes office

Worst since 1945, with

-9.5%

GDP growth

-3.6%

6

labor productivity growth

4 2 0

2010

-2 -4 -6 -8 -10

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

Domestic general gov’t expenditure in ASEAN, as % of GDP (2018) Thailand Thailand

2.89%

Vietnam Vietnam

2.70%

Brunei Brunei

2.30%

Singapore Singapore

2.25%

Malaysia Malaysia

Philippines Philippines

1.44% 1.42% 1.28%

Indonesia Indonesia

Cambodia Cambodia

Laos Laos

0.87% 0.71%

Myanmar Myanmar 0% 0.00%

1.92%

0.5% 0.50%

1% 1.00%

1.5% 1.50%

2% 2.00%

2.5% 2.50%

3% 3.00%

The pandemic has shown how the country’s underfunded health system lagged behind our ASEAN neighbors, because we spend more on infrastructure.

SOURCE NATIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, IBON FOUNDATION RESEARCH ARON SIERVA INFOGRAPHIC DESIGN IAN RAPHAEL LOPEZ

2018-19

+12%

IBON says that this growth in labor productivity fueled the economy, resulting in

+8.2%

GDP growth in the time period.

13

2020

here are at least 100 projects under the BBB Program, bannering Duterte’s supposed dream of economic development. Indeed, BBB may have built, built, built, but infrastructures are not the primary basis for development. Antithetical to its objective, BBB has been a tool of destruction.

It damages the environment, replacing forestlands with high-rise buildings; and it aggravates the living conditions of the marginalized. The BBB program demolishes long-protected cultures, displacing indigenous people from their ancestral lands that are now reclaimed for “economic purposes.” It impedes genuine national development as it gives priority to foreign companies and investors.

With 22 million Filipinos struggling in poverty, it is worth asking who would really benefit from high-end airports, highways, bridges, railroads, and buildings. Considering the agricultural nature and archipelagic structure of the Philippines, the government should extend assistance to farmers and fisherfolk, instead of converting our natural resources to infrastructures. Supporting the agricultural and fisheries sector would not only strengthen the sector’s profits, but would also guarantee our country’s food supply and sovereignty, consequently decreasing our dependence on global markets and our need to excessively import.

If the Philippine government is earnestly keen on pushing for economic development, then it must be development anchored on the calls, advocacies, and needs of the masses: one that does not merely serve bureaucrat capitalists, oligarchs, or the comprador bourgeoisie.

As Lodema Doroteo, a Dumagat teacher, stated, “Hindi kami against sa kaunlaran, pero dapat ang gagawing pagbabago ay ‘di rin makakaapekto [nang masama] sa karamihan.” For every airport and dam, countless families are forcibly displaced from their homes. For every road construction, our forests and natural resources continue to deteriorate. And while the BBB program builds for the future, it destroys the lives of millions of Filipinos today.

ONLINE

uplbperspective.org Read the full story and additional context on our website http://bit.ly/InfraTrap

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DAY

agsimula ang administrasyong Camacho noong Nobyembre 1, 2020, matapos siyang ihalal ng Board of Regents (BOR) sa kanilang ika-1354 na pagpupulong na ginanap noong ika-24 ng Setyembre, 2020. Si Camacho ang humalili kay dating Tsanselor Fernando C. Sanchez, Jr, isa rin sa kaniyang mga naging katunggali upang makuha ang nasabing posisyon. Matapos ang 100 na araw sa kanyang pag-upo sa pwesto, ano na nga ba ang estado ng ating unibersidad?

Bago pa man magsimula ang termino ni Chancellor Camacho, kinakaharap na ng unibersidad ang matinding isyu ukol sa daandaang nakabinbin na kaso ng Maximum Residency Rule (MRR) at readmission. Matagal nang idinadaing ng mga estudyante ang burukrasya na sinasabing lalong pinaigting ng mga anti-mag aaral na polisiyang ipinatupad noong pamamalakad ni Sanchez.

Mula sa diyalogong dinaluhan ni Chancellor Camacho at ni Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs (VCSA) Dr. Janette Malata-Silva, kasama ang University Student Council (USC) noong Oktubre 16, 2020, nakapaglatag sila ng mga plano upang maresolba ang matagal nang patong-patong na mga kaso ng MRR at readmission. Ipinaalam din ni VCSA Malata-Silva, sa nasabing usapan, ang kanilang mga ginagawang hakbang, kasama si Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs (VCAA) Jean Loyola upang suriin ang mga kasong ito.

Mula sa pahayag ni Chancellor Camacho sa [P] Live noong Oktubre 3, 2020, ipinaliwanag niya na kailangan pa nilang mangalap ng impormasyon patungkol sa mga estudyante tulad ng: kung sinu-sino ang mga estudyanteng may kaso ng MRR at readmission, kung saan sila nagmula, anong kurso ang kanilang kinukuha, at mga kondisyon na nakapaloob sa kanilang mga kaso.

Ipinahayag ng tsanselor na gagawin nila ito sa pamamagitan ng kanilang pakikipagtulungan sa mga pinuno ng sangkaestudyantehan.

Nangako rin siya na sa oras na maupo na siya sa opisina, tatagal lamang ng dalawa o tatlong linggo ang pagresolba sa mga kasong ito; sa ngayon ay may usap-usapan na mayroon nang inaprubahang mga kaso ng MRR at readmission ngunit wala pang nailalabas na pormal na anunsyo ukol dito.

N OV E M B E R 11, 2020 Initiated the UPLB Connectivity Assistance for Remote Students program which provides learning support systems and assistance to UPLB students transitioning to remote learning

“Ito uli ang ating magiging panawagan: Be compassionate.”

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N O V E M B E R 1 9, 2 0 2 0 On difficulties in remote learning N OV E M B E R 26, 2020 UPLB launched Agapay, UPLB’s disaster response task force, a platform for coordinating response on calamities

25

31

DECEMBER 2, 2020 Camacho condemns killing of former Elbi mayor Caesar Perez

BALIKTANAW SA 100 ARAW

K

inaharap din ng administrasyon niya ang problema sa pagimplementa ng epektibong remote at modular learning bunsod ng pandemya na naghigpit sa pagdaraos ng klaseng pisikal. Napilitan ang unibersidad na makisabay sa online classes kahit hindi pa man handa ang kalakhan ng mga estudyante, guro at kawani.

Sa nagdaang semestre, naglabas si Camacho ng ilang mga memorandum at administrative order ukol sa isinasagawang remote learning. Naglunsad rin ng mga konsultasyon upang pakinggan ang suliranin at hinaing ng mga nasasakupan.

Isa sa mga palibot-liham na inilabas ni Chancellor Camacho ay ang Memorandum No. 161 noong Nobyembre 13, 2020 upang sumunod sa inilabas na memorandum ng Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs (OVPAA). Ito ay ang “Clarification on Suspended Academic Rule and Processes in the First Semester AY 2020-2021,” na naglalaman ng (1) suspensyon ng deadline para sa Leave of Absence (LOA) at course dropping hanggang ika-9 ng Disyembre, (2) ang pagtanggap ng 12-unit course load bilang regular load, (3) ang hindi pagbilang sa naturang semestre sa MRR, at (4) ang hindi pagbilang sa attendance

1

“We view the rescission of the UP-DND accord as an assault against UP’s freedoms”

78

J A N U A R Y 1 9, 2 0 2 1 On UP-DND Accord issue

Isang malaking hamon para kay Chancellor Camacho ang pagsisimula ng kanyang termino sa gitna ng banta at panganib na dulot ng pandemya. Patuloy pa rin ang hamon na unahin ang interes ng kaniyang mga nasasakupan, at tumindig sa lumalalang abuso’t pananamantala sa karapatang pantao at pang-akademikong kalayaan.

Ni Emerson Espejo RESEARCH JOAQUIN GONZALEZ AND GERARD LAYDIA

DESIGN IAN RAPHAEL LOPEZ AND GERARD LAYDIA

JA N UA RY 28, 202 1 “We took a proactive stance to uphold the academic freedom of the university, and ensure the safety and security of our constituents and our surrounding communities,” Camacho said in his meeting with the Laguna police after the abrogation of the UP-DND Accord.

PHOTO UPLB WEBSITE

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bilang course requirement. Bunsod ng mga nagdaang kalamidad ay mas tumindi pa ang hamon para sa mga estudyante upang makasabay sa virtual learning. Nagkaroon ng diyalogo noong Disyembre 2, 2020 sa pagitan ni Chancellor Camacho at ng USC upang ilatag ang mga naging hirap at balakid sa nagdaang semestre, rehistrasyon sa klase, at plano para sa susunod na semestre.

Tiniyak naman ni Chancellor Camacho na suportado ng administrasyon ng UPLB ang mga apila para sa mas flexible na pag-aaral sa kabila ng mga suliranin na nailatag sa pag-uusap. Ngunit sinabi rin niya na hindi ganoon kadali gumawa ng desisyon para sa unibersidad dahil ito ay bahagi ng UP system at ito’y nasa ilalim ng mga resolusyon na binubuo ng nakatataas na administrasyon ng UP. Sa gitna ng kaliwa’t kanan na panawagan ng mga estudyante upang ihinto ang nakaraang semestre dahil sa naging matinding pinsala nito hindi lamang sa pisikal na kalusugan pati na rin sa kalusugang pangkaisipan, nagpatuloy pa rin ang semestre. Sa kabila ng malawakang strike na ikinasa bilang pakikiisa sa mga mag-aaral na wala ng kapasidad upang magpatuloy pa sa pag-aaral, binigo pa ring pakinggan ng BOR ang hiling ng mga estudyante. Matatandaan na hindi ito ang unang pagkakataon na binalewala ng BOR ang hinaing ng mga estudyante sa pamamagitan ng kanilang mga ginawang desisyon.

Manipestasyon ang mga memorandum, tulad ng pagbawas sa kinakailangan na rekisito sa mga asignatura, na sinusubukang pagaanin ng administrasyong Camacho, sa abot ng kanilang makakaya, ang mga paghihirap na nararanasan ng kanilang mga nasasakupan. Gayunpaman hindi pa ito sapat upang maresolba ang mga problema katulad ng kawalan ng access sa internet ng ilang mga mag-aaral at ang mga problemang kaugnay ng remote learning na nangangailangan nang agarang solusyon lalo’t hindi pa tiyak kung kailan babalik sa dati ang lahat.

H

indi lang mga isyung pangkampus ang hinarap ng UPLB, nariyan din ang tangka ng opresyon mula sa mga puwersa sa labas ng unibersidad. Nagulantang hindi lamang ang buong komunidad ng UP, pati rin ang mga estudyante mula sa ibang pamantasan, matapos ipawalang bisa ng Department of National Defense (DND) ang UP-DND Accord nitong Enero 18.

Ang nasabing kasunduan ang nagbabawal sa pagpasok ng militar at kapulisan sa loob ng mga UP kampus ng walang pahintulot mula sa mga opisyal ng unibersidad. Nauna nang ipinaalam ni Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana ang pagpapawalang bisa sa kasunduan noong ika-15 ng Enero sa pamamagitan ng ipinadalang liham kay UP President Danilo Concepcion.

Kaugnay nito ay naglabas ng pahayag si Camacho noong Enero 19, na nagsasaad ng kanyang pagkadismaya sa pagpapawalang bisa sa kasunduan at tila ito’y isang “pagatake sa kalayaan ng UP bilang isang institusyon.”

Kasama rin sa kanyang pahayag ang pakikiisa niya sa komunidad sa pagkondena sa hakbang na isinagawa ng DND, “We will not back down. We will continue with our duty to defend the freedom of our people guaranteed under the Constitution – the right to life and liberty, the freedom of speech, of expression and the right of the people to campaign against graft and corruption.”

Pinabulaanan naman ni Chancellor Camacho na nagkaroon ng kasunduan sa pagitan

Aniya...

Ang ibig sabihin ng future proofing UPLB ay mapaghandaan natin ang mga paggambala – ang mga tinatawag nating disruptions, mga disturbances...

AGOSTO 26, 2020 Sa isang [P] Live interview ukol sa kaniyang plataporma

Pagka-upo natin sa November 2 ay ang ating mga maihayag sa ating mga estudyante na ang pagre-review ng MRR o readmission cases.

OKTUBRE 3, 2020 Sa isang [P] Live interview ukol sa mga MRR/read cases

Our students, especially our freshmen, may be lacking in course content and skills but definitely not in empathy and compassion.

NOBYEMBRE 19, 2020 Sa kasagsagan ng mga kalamidad na rumagasa sa Southern Tagalog

There was no agreement discussed.

No talks of communism or red-tagging.

PEBRERO 5, 2021 Ukol sa di umano’y kasunduan ng PNP at UPLB

[P] GRAPHIC: JERMAINE VALERIO

15

ng UPLB at Laguna Police matapos kumalat ang isang Facebook post ng Philippine National Police (PNP) nitong Enero 29, na nagsasaad ng pagsang-ayon ng magkabilang panig para sa “paglulunsad ng mas pinagtibay na kooperasyon at pang-unawa sa kapayapaan at ordenansa, at seguridad sa loob ng unibersidad.”

Ito ay matapos bumisita si Camacho kasama ang iba pang mga opisyal ng UPLB sa Laguna Police Provincial Office (LPPO) para pag-usapan ang seguridad sa kampus sa kabila ng pagwawakas sa UP-DND Accord.

Binigyang-diin ng kasulukuyang administrasyon na ang kanilang pagbisita ay upang igiit ang tindig ng unibersidad sa pagtataguyod ng UP-DND accord sa kabila ng ipinahayag na pagwawalang-bisa nito ng DND. Mayroon pang halos tatlong taon si Chancellor Camacho upang pamunuan ang pamantasan; bagamat hindi pa masusukat sa nagdaang mahigit tatlong buwan ang kahihinatnan ng administrasyong Camacho, marami pa siyang maaaring patunayan bilang tsanselor ng UPLB. Marapat mang banggitin na sinasabing naging makabuluhan ang kanyang mga naging unang hakbang para sa komunidad, nariyan pa rin ang hamon na patuloy na unahin ang interes ng kaniyang mga nasasakupan at tumindig sa lumalalang abuso’t pananamantala sa karapatang pantao at pang-akademikong kalayaan. Sa unang ika-100 na araw ni Camacho bilang tsanselor ng UPLB, patuloy nating singilin at kalampagin ang “future-proof” na unibersidad na “maka-estudyante” at “makatao” na ipinangako niya sa simula ng kaniyang termino.

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C U LT U R E

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ile-hilerang mga kainan, samu’t saring mga “rides”, naglalakasang mga tugtuging bitbit ang mga makamasang panawagan at mga nakakasilaw na ilaw ng mga tindahan at pasyalan na animo’y nang-aakit sa mga mapaparayo roon, ilan lang iyan sa mga eksenang kinapapanabikan tuwing sasapit ang tanyag na “February Fair” o mas kilala sa tawag na FebFair na ipinagdiriwang sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas sa Los Baños.

Unti-unting tinangkilik at kalauna’y naging tradisyon at kultura na para sa nakararami ang pagpunta sa UPLB. Hindi lang limitado sa layunin bilang pasyalan at pinaggigimikan pero hitik na hitik pa sa natatago nitong halaga at pinagmulan.

Sa katunayan, isa sa mga dinarayo rito ay ang sandamakmak na atraksyong tiyak na bubusog sa kiliti ng lahat. Nariyan ang kabi-kabilang “booths”, tiangge at perya na regalo ng iba’t ibang organisasyong pinangungunahan ng mga mag-aaral sa UPLB at iba pa tulad ng Beerpong, Vikings, Horror Booth, Binggo, Mountain Climbing, Brgy. Putho Tuntungin Handicrafts Booth at mga kainan.

Kung ang hanap mo naman ay ang mga tugtugan, hindi rin mawawala rito ang mga “performances” ng mga lokal na banda ng Laguna at iba pang kilalang banda tulad ng ‘Orange and Lemons’ at ‘Moonstar 88’. Nagkakaroon din dito ng “Battle of the bands” na nilalahukan ng mga estudyante at iba pa. Ilan lamang ito sa mga samu’t saring pakulong tiyak na makapagbibigay ng ngiti sa lahat.

Kaugnay pa nito, ang sayang natatamo ay hindi lang para sa pansariling kasiyahan sapagkat ang pagdiriwang na ito ay hindi lamang eksklusibo para sa mga mag-aaral ng UPLB bagkus ito ay bukas para sa lahat nang naghahanap ng pupuntahan tuwing sasapit ang Araw ng mga Puso. Ito rin marahil ang dahilan kung bakit tanyag ang pagdiriwang na ito sa buong lalawigan ng Laguna. Ang makapagbigay saya kasabay ng pagmamahal sa kapwa ang karagdagang saysay ng simpleng pagdiriwang hindi naman sinasadyang mabuo para sa kasiyahan.

Perya laban sa mapang-aping sistema Samantala, mahaba at makabuluhan ang kasaysayan ng pagdiriwang na ito tuwing Pebrero sapagkat ibang-iba ang pinag-ugatan ng konsepto nito. Sa katunayan, ang UPLB FebFair ay isa talagang “protest fair” na isinagawa noong kasagsagan ng Martial Law noong dekada ‘70.

Ito ay orihinal na ginawa sa buwan ng Setyembre at hindi sa Pebrero upang maging daan para ilabas ang hinaing ng mga estudyante sa pagpapatupad ng Batas Militar at ipaglaban ang kanilang karapatan lalo na’t unti-unting nagiging bangungot ang lagay ng bansa noon dahil sa talamak na paglabag ng estado sa karapatang-pantao, extra-judicial killings, at inhustisya na naganap noon diktadurang Marcos. Ito ay nagsisilbing daan para mas palakasin ang mga panawagan ng masang-api mula sa hanay ng mga magsasaka, mangingisda, katutubo, at manggagawa. Kaakibat ng mga himig ay ang bitbit na boses mula at para sa mga pilit na pinatatahimik ng ating mapagsamantalang pamahalaan.

Ang tunay na adhikain noon ng mga magaaral ng UPLB ay patuloy pa ring ibinabandera hanggang ngayon sa pamamagitan ng paglulunsad ng taunang FebFair. Pinangungunahan ito ng University Student Council, kasama ang iba’t ibang mga organisasyon sa pamantasan na naglulunsad at nag-oorganisa ng kabuuang pagdiriwang. Tanyag dito ang mga paganap na isinasagawa ng mga pambansa-demokratikong pangmasang organisasyon ng mga kabataan at mga tagapagsalita sa pagitan ng pagtanghal ng mga banda mula sa iba’t ibang sektor ng Timog

F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 | U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G

Higit pa sa ilaw at musika Patok na patok ang selebrasyong ito dahil sa mga atraksyon at pasyalang tiyak na sinusugod ng mga Lagunense tuwing sasapit ang Araw ng mga Puso.

Ngunit hindi ito ang pinaka-esensya ng taunang pagdiriwang.

Ni Vince Villanueva

Hindi lamang napupuno ng musika at galak ang taunang Feb Fair, kundi naitatampok rin ang iba’t ibang mga panawagan ng mga sektor sa lipunan.

[P] FILE PHOTOS

BY KRISTINE PAULA BAUTISTA

Katagalugan. Gayundin, nagkakaroon din sila ng iba’t ibang makukulay na welga at mobilisasyon bilang panawagan at pagkalampag sa mapanupil na sistema ng rehimen. Nagkakaroon din ng kabuuang tema o sentro ng pakikibaka ang pagdiriwang ng FebFair na kanilang ibinabandera at kanilang ipinapawagan sa masa.

Perya ng pagkakaisa Dumaan na ang mga taon ay sinisimbolo pa rin ng selebrasyon ang kolektibo at nagkakaisang komunidad ng pamantasan kasama ang masa.

Mga hangarin at adhikaing pagbabago ang nagbubuklod sa lahat ng mga Iskolar ng Bayan at sa masa. Simula’t sapul, ang layuning magkaisa sa iisang panawagan at kalampagin ang estado sa mga lumiliko nilang aksyon ang masasabi nating matagumpay na naisakatuparan ng lahat at patuloy pang pag-iibayuhin para sa hinaharap at para sa sambayanan. Sa katunayan, ang pakikiisa sa mga “rally” ang pangunahing dinadaluhan ng mga mag-aaral sa UPLB. Sa kabuuan, mainam pa rin na maipaalala palagi sa lahat ang ugat ng FebFair upang higit na mailagay sa kamalayan ng nakararami ang kasalukuyang pampulitikang sitwasyon ng bansa. Kasunod na rin kasi ng selebrasyong ito ang patuloy pa ring laban natin sa inhustisya at panunupil kaya kinakailangang paigtingin ang ating pagiging mulat, organisa, at edukado.

Ngayong nagkaroon ng pandemya, hindi natatapos ang ating pagtindig at pagkilos sapagka’t buhay pa rin ang diwa ng FebFair, nadadaan man iyan sa “online” ED, o pakikiisa sa mga protesta sapagkat higit pa sa mga halakhakan, pailaw at tugtugan ang tunay na saysay ng Feb Fair.

CULTURE

U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G | F E B R UA RY 2 6, 2 02 1

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aikukumpara ito sa katatawanang inabot ni Dr. Farrah Bunch nang punahin ni Dr. Adam Smith, isang Austrelyanong doktor na itinatama ang mga maling impormasyon ukol sa mga health practices, ang pahayag nito na nakagagaling ng pamamaga sa katawan ang isang cabbage compress. Pinagpiyestahan ito sa social media at kumalat kaagad ang mga repolyo memes kaugnay nito.

Dahil dito kaya naungkat muli ang ipinasara ng Food and Drug Administration (FDA) na parmasya at klinika ni Dr. Farrah sa Tarlac noong 2018. Ang pagpapasarang ito ay dahil sa mga hindi rehistradong gamot na ibinebenta roon. Nagsilabasan din ang testimonya ng mga kamag-anak ng mga pasyenteng dumaan at kalauna’y binawian ng buhay dahil sa paraan ng “panggagamot” ng naturang doktor, isama pa ang mga nireresetang gamot na presyong-ginto mula sa parmasya nito.

Isang salita para rito: scam. Ngunit hindi rin naman nalalayo rito ang kasalukuyan at umiiral na istrukturang pangkalusugan.

deployment ban noong nakaraang taon para sa layuning mapunan ang kakulangan sa mga medikal na manggagawa sa bansa. Ngunit hindi sila kailanman inintindi ng administrasyon na nag-alok lamang noon ng P500 para sa kanilang bolunterismo habang nag-iikot sa bansa ang pandemya. Sa madaling-sabi, isang sapilitang pagtatrabaho kahit walang maayos na pasweldo.

Corruption-ground

Karapatang tinatapyas Maraming kakulangan sa mga medikal na suplay, pasilidad, at doktor na nagpapakitang walang kakayahan ang bansa na makasunod sa mga rekomendasyong bilang ng World Health Organization (WHO). Hindi rin pantay-pantay ang distribusyon sa mga serbisyong pangkalusugan. Nakatuon lamang kadalasan ang mga malalaking bahagi nito sa Metro Manila at mga kalapit na lugar kung kaya’t hindi rin nito naaabot ang maraming mga Pilipino mula sa kanayunan at sa mga malalayong lalawigan.

Dito makikitang pira-piraso at bulok ang uri ng sistemang pangkalusugan sa bansa.

Ang pampubliko nitong sektor na nakasalalay ang panustos sa buwis ng mga tao ay hindi man lang kayang tugunan ang primaryang serbisyong medikal.

Ang pribadong sektor naman nito ay utak-merkado, at hindi lahat ng Pilipino ay may kakayahang magbayad para rito. Kaya kahit isang karapatang pantao na ginagarantiya ng konstitusyon ang kalusugan, hindi naman ito maayos at patas na nakakamtan ng lahat.

Kakarampot Ekonomiya nga raw muna bago pangangalaga. Sapagkat kahit paubos na ang mga manggagawang pangkalusugan sa serbisyo publiko ay parang kalakal na ipinapadala sa ibang bansa ang mga ito. Ayon sa datos ng Philippines Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), taong 2016 pa lang ay 19,551 nang mga nars ang nangibang-bansa.

Ngunit ang mga migrasyong ito sa sektor ng kalusugan ay naglalantad ng katotohanan ng mababang pasahod at kawalang benepisyo sa mga manggagawa rito sa bansa. Ang mga nars ay kumikita lamang ng average na P13,500 kada buwan sa pampublikong sektor pangkalusugan habang P10,000 naman sa pangpribado, ayon sa istatistika ng Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

Nagkaroon lamang ng taas-pasweldo sa mga ito, pati na sa ibang mga healthcare workers, dahil sa banta ng pandemya. At bagama’t may hazard pay na ibinibigay sa kanila ngayon, hindi naman lahat sa kanila ay nakatatanggap nito.

Para ngang nabudol-budol ang mga taong kung tawagin natin ngayo’y frontliners dahil sa pitong buwan na pagkakakasa ng

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Samu’t saring sakit ng sistema Habang patuloy na pinapangunahan ng mga manggagawang pangkalusugan ang pagharap sa COVID-19 sa kabila ng banta nito sa kanilang mga buhay at kalusugan naman ng bawat Pilipino, ang kinabibilangan nilang institusyon ay may bahagi rin sa pagbabantang ito.

Ni Reignne Francisco

Sa aspeto ng pinansyal na seguridad para sa mga Pilipino at pagtataguyod ng Universal Health Care (UHC), ang pagtatatag ng health insurance na PhilHealth ay bigo na proteksyunan ang lahat sa mga pangkalusugang gastusin. Limitado lang ang sakop nito na nagreresulta sa malaking porsyento ng out-of-pocket (OOP) o iyong mga gastusing hindi saklaw ng health insurance.

At habang nagkakaproblema ang mga OFWs noong nakaraang taon dahil sa paglaganap ng pandemya ay tinaasan pa ng PhilHealth ang kanilang mandatoryo at buwanang kontribusyon mula 2.75% noong 2019 na naging 3% ng Abril 2020. Panibagong kargo na naman ito para sa mga OFWs na noo’y may alalahanin na mapabalik sa Pilipinas kagaya ng iba na mga naunang pinauwi. Insensitibo at takaw-salapi ang tinaguriang social health insurance ng bansa.

Kaya nang simulang kwestyunin ang kahina-hinalang P8,150 na presyo ng kanilang RT-PCR test, na nauwi sa imbestigasyong naglantad sa mga pekeng kaso ng COVID-19 na pinaglaan ng reimbursements, alokasyon ng ilang daang libong piso para sana sa mga pasyente ng COVID-19 pero ibinigay sa mga dialysis centers, overpriced na IT system, at sa sinasabing ninakaw na P15-bilyon (na maaaring mas malaki pa) ay agad na lumutang ang isyu ng korapsyon na bumasag sa imahe nito bilang isang tagapagtaguyod ng pinansyal na seguridad sa konteksto ng kalusugan.

Kitang-kita na patuloy sa panggagantso ang mga kumokontrol sa pangkalusugang istruktura. Hindi nabibigyan ng primaryang medikal na pagtugon ang karamihan, kahit pa ngayong may pandemya; sa halip ay mas nagpopokus pa ang administrasyon sa pagtatayo ng imprastruktura at sa kontra-insurhensya na kumikitil sa buhay ng mga mamamayang Pilipino. Para sa isang batayang karapatang pantao, natural na maging asado. Pero mala-joke time lang pala simula’t sapul kagaya ng repolyo compress ni Dr. Farrah. Pati nararapat na bayad at benepisyo sa mga medikal na manggagawa, nagkukuripot pa. Basta yata may ka-ching na makuha mula sa paghihirap ng mga ito ay wala na itong pakialam pa sa iba. Tuloy lang ang money-grubbing habang balat-kayong nakikisimpatya sa mga Pilipino. Kasinungalingan ang inihahain tulad ng huwad na pag-asa na isinasaboy ni Dr. Farrah para magatasan ng pera ang mga nagtitiwala sa mga gamot niya.

Kaya nga dapat nang lunasan ang panggagantsong umiikot sa pangkalusugang sektor.

Oras na para tapusin ang mala-COVID-19 na pagbabanta nito sa bulsa at buhay ng mga Pilipino. Alisin ang mga nagdadala ng impeksyon; palitan ng bago ang kabulukan nito.

Ang reseta ay tunay na reporma. Itaguyod ang libre, komprehensibo, at progresibong serbisyong medikal para sa lahat. Dapat nang lunukin ng medikal na sektor ang gamot na ito upang ang sakit nitong pang-i-scam ay matapos na.

[P] GRAPHICS NI JERMAINE VALERIO

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OPINION

F E B R UA RY 2 6 , 2 02 1 | U P L B P E R S P EC T I V E .O R G

Let our schools be zones of peace N O F U RY SO LO U D

By Kennlee M. Orola

Lumad communities had been heavily displaced far from their ancestral lands for quite some time already. Most of them moved to cities or nearby communities. Some took refuge inside universities, away from all the harassments and abuses of armed men. However, recently, another Lumad school found itself raided by the PNP where 26 teachers, students, and Lumad leaders were put in jail.

All of this happened under the veil of a “rescue operation” inside a university in Cebu.

Schools should have been a zone of peace, but peace is a privilege if you are living under a tyrannical regime. This is especially true for a lot of Lumad schools that were closed by the Department of Education and ransacked by armed forces. We have seen 178 schools shut down since 2016 and the number continues to rise.

What bothers me more is the number of harassments inflicted upon the Lumad communities. According to Save Our Schools (SOS) Network, there are about 584 cases of attacks, which includes extrajudicial killings and sexual harassment on top of human rights violations. The AFP-PNP is also actively red-tagging these schools, claiming that they are breeding grounds of New People’s Army (NPA) revolutionaries without any solid evidence to show.

I still remember the art exhibit in Diliman that featured the artworks of young Lumad.

They featured burning trees, soldiers pointing guns to them, chaos, and blood, among others. I can only imagine the trauma that these children had to go through and battle every

[P] PHOTO BY ISABEL PANGILINAN

day. So there is no surprise if some of them will pursue a path of armed struggle. Who will save you if the people who ought to protect you are the ones killing you?

In a recent interview, the chief of police Deblod Sinas said that some of the children confessed that they are being groomed as combatants and are indoctrinated as communist rebels. Contrary to this statement a social welfare in Cebu DSWD said that the children

mentioned nothing about being indoctrinated.

The children unanimously testified that they are only being taught to read and write and are all well taken care of inside the perimeter of the school.

It is really painful to hear the cries of men, women, and children from a video taken in a mobile phone in that said rescue operation.

One thing is for sure, it is unclear who they are rescuing these children from. One by one,

Lumad schools are being shut down. More lost opportunities for these children to learn and more dreams are deferred if not broken. I can not stop thinking, who are these uniformed men and women serving for? Because clearly, in that video, they are not serving the poor and the underprivileged. They operate almost like a private militia following blind orders from men sitting on leather swivel chairs.

Sadly, the displacement of Lumad communities are not isolated cases. More indigenous communities face the same predicaments of defending their ancestral lands from government forces and private companies. The Dumagat in Southern Tagalog are threatened to lose their ancestral domain in light of the creation of the Kaliwa dam. Aetas of Tarlac were displaced in exchange of the New Clark City and Mangyans of Mindoro were forced to vacate the mountains because the AFP continues to bomb their villages.

I can only imagine the amount of violence these people have seen in their lifetime and that would not stop me from fighting for the lives of my fellow Filipinos. I whole-heartedly condemn this act of violence from PNP. The PNP should be serving in the interest of the masses and should not act as if they are above the law and the lives of the Filipino people.

Schools should have been an environment to nurture minds to think critically. It has no place for violence nor force. So please hands off our youth and keep out of our schools!

——— The UPLB Perspective is accepting opinion articles that touch on relevant issues concerning news, politics, culture, and personal experiences. Send your articles or queries to opinion.uplbperspective@ gmail.com

Where the grass is greener MUMBLINGS

By Gerard Laydia [Trigger warning: Mention of suicide]

It shouldn’t be that hard; trying to thrive in academics all the while working to stabilize your family’s financial situation, rebuilding hardearned homes devastated by the past typhoons, coping with everyday problems stifling your mental health condition, and the like - but the thing is, it is hard. I learned and relearned this as schools nationwide transitioned towards remote learning as a safety measure against COVID-19, and with it came the loss of friends and acquaintances. On the onset of a new semester, students are yet again made to prepare for another battle of learning in the online setup. Undeniably, the semester has become very challenging for most of us, if not all, as we were forced to adjust to a new scheme of learning and not all of us had the resources and the resolve to attend classes conducting synchronous sessions to genuinely learn.

Our national government has proven time and time again its incompetence, all the while sacrificing Filipinos for it. None of these would have happened if our government officials were

focused on doing measures on more pressing matters, such as allocating amounts for the pandemic response, the improvement of our healthcare and educational systems, as well as narrowing down the digital divide.

It is true that technology is becoming indispensable in everyday life, especially today where most classes are being conducted online. This does not consider the needs of the underprivileged. Families that go a day with barely any sustenance is still a painful reality, especially in the rural areas. The situation is so severe, that when the new academic year began, there was even a reported 9% decline in enrollment around 2.3 million students. The government must address this, including the stagnation of our rural communities in terms of technology use. More efforts should be put into making the internet accessible for all.

Even as someone from the greener side of the field, it was still very hard for me to buckle down and finish all the modules of my courses in the previous semester. Without a doubt, it was a very tedious and eye-straining experience, for I have spent the past five months in front of my personal desktop computer, burning the candle at both ends, while being unsure if I have learned anything at all. The previous semester became a poor estimation

of our academic performances. In the midst of conducting remote mode of classes while battling the COVID-19 pandemic, typhoons have ravaged homes of some students. Hence, forcing most of the professors to resolve to end the semester and give minimal requirements to the students.

However, the requirements given to us in our classes, whether minimal or not, would not suffice as a proper basis of the students’ academic performance. Many have thrived and almost gained flat uno general averages, but there is still the other side of the spectrum we need to consider: learners living below or within the poverty line, ailed with unstable mental health conditions, and have little to no access to technology. They would surely do a great job too, if only they are supported with sufficient resources and means to learn while being in a conducive learning environment.

A friend would be a testament to this. I would see him in our residence hall with stacked books almost covering up his face. He studied really hard and smart in hopes of becoming an engineer. However, life can’t just go the way we want it to go. Perhaps due to the burden of his personal problems, he chose to make a turn no one could’ve predicted he’d choose - suicide, leaving friends and family heartbroken.

Months after his passing, another isko was reported to have chosen the same route while the semester is drawing near its end. Two lives have been lost during a semester, and they are only a part of the proportion of students choosing to end their lives. Some may have even been juggling work and academics, stifled with mental health, and equipped with little to no means for learning and burdened with academic workload.

It shouldn’t be that hard, and that’s the point, it shouldn’t be. And unless we address this, we will painstakingly continue learning and relearning losses, among which are the loss of friends and acquaintances in a literal sense. To students in more straitened circumstances, bear in mind that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. If you happen to come this far, I would like to commend you for surviving, and you deserve a pat on the back. Saying this a guy from where the grass is greener.

——— It’s okay to not to be okay. If you are in need of mental support and assistance, contact National Center for Mental Health: 09178998727 (mobile), 02-7-989-8727 (landline), 155 (toll free, landline to landline); Suicide hotline: 804 4673(HOPE); or the Office of Counseling and Guidance, OVCSA, UPLB Tel. No.: (049) 536-7255 FB: facebook.com/ ocgovcsa.

OPINION

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112 taong bilanggo ni Uncle Sam HODGEPODGE Ni Dean Carlo Valmeo

Sa pag-upo ni Joseph Biden bilang ika-46 na Pangulo ng Estados Unidos, mukhang nabunutan na ng tinik ang mga Democrat at Amerikanong hindi nabiktima ng disinformation at QAnon conspiracy theories. Sa wakas ay napalayas na nila sa White House ang populistang si Donald Trump. Ang pagkatanggal sa pwesto ng isang racist at sinungaling na presidente ay maituturing na tagumpay ng mga mamamayan ng United States. Kinikilala natin kung gaano kahalaga sa kanila ang unti-unting panunumbalik ng demokrasya lalo na’t bago na ang namumuno sa ehekutibo. Umaasa nga tayong ibig sabihin din nito ay pagbaba ng mga insidente ng diskriminasyon, inhustisya, at pang-aabuso ng kapulisan sa Estados Unidos.

Alam din nating tagumpay ito ng mahigit apat na milyong Pilipino at Filipino-Americans na nakatira sa US — na itinuturing din na minorya at persons of color. Pinalala pa kasi ng coronavirus ang diskriminasyong nararanasan ng ating mga kababayan. Hindi-hinding ko nga makakalimutan ang footage sa balita kung saan nakuhanan yung diskriminasyong naranasan nila habang nagre-report sa California noong Hulyo 2020. Sinigawan ang mga Pilipino ng isang puting lalaki at tinawag na ‘pigs’ at ‘disease carriers.’ At ano ang dahilan? Dahil lamang sila ay Southeast Asian.

Bukod dito, mukhang mas magiging bukas na rin ang tinaguriang ‘Land of the Free’ sa pagtanggap ng mga imigrante at refugee na tinatakasan lamang ang malubhang sosyo-ekonomikong kalagayan nila sa kani-kanilang bansa. Malayong-malayo sa anti-imigranteng polisiya ni Trump. Pero hindi tulad

PHOTOS FROM OFFICIAL GAZETTE, MALACANANG / COLLAGE BY GERARD LAYDIA

ng ‘bars’ ng Fil-Am rapper na si Ez Mil sa viral hit niya na ‘Panalo,’ na nagsasabing “‘Wag nang pag-usapan ang mga negatibong pangyayari,” papalag kami. Pipiliin naming buksan ang diskurso dito. Sa totoo lang, kung ang ibig sabihin kasi ng pagbabalik ng demokrasiya sa Amerika sa ilalim ni Biden ay ang pag-preserba sa status quo ng Pilipinas, hindi namin ito lulunukin.

Siguro ay kailangan natin ng isang crash course sa kasaysayan ng bansa. Balikan natin ang gabi ng Pebrero 4, 1899, Sta Mesa, Manila.

Ang sabi ng kasaysayan, pinaputukan ng militar ng US ang dalawang hindi armadong Pilipinong sundalo sa ngayo’y Sociego Street.

Isang linya lang ‘yan sa mahabang resibo ng mga masaker sa kasaysayang handog ng Amerika. Pero, mahigit isang siglo na ng una tayong pinutukan ni Uncle Sam ay patuloy pa rin niya tayong pinagsasamantalahan. Huwad ang kasarinlang binigay ng Amerika dahil kapalit nito ay pangsasamantala ng mga dayuhang imperyalista, mga malalaking Amerikanong

burgesyang komprador, sa murang lakas-paggawa ng mga manggagawang Pilipino.

May mga inisyatiba raw sila sa usapin ng climate change pero kibit-balikat naman sa iniwang trahedya sa kalikasan ng mga multinational mining corporation sa Pilipinas. Wala na nga ang mga base militar sa Subic at Clark, pero malayang naglalabas-masok ang mga Amerikanong sundalo sa bansa sa bisa ng Visiting Forces Agreement. Tapos, mula 2016 hanggang 2019 ay niregaluhan pa nila si Pangulong Duterte ng $550 milyon o mahigit P26 bilyong military assistance.

Isang malaking katarantaduhan para sa isang estadong pinaparangalan ang simbolismo ng Statue of Liberty ay patuloy na nagpapaulan ng ayudang suporta sa isang pasistang kumikitil sa libo-libong biktima ng anti-mahirap na giyera kontra-droga at nanghaharass at pumapatay ng mga kritiko, aktibista, at human rights defenders sa akusasyong terorista daw sila. Pero sa bagay, ano nga bang pinagkaiba ng Pilipinas sa bansang ginagawang video game at pampalipas oras ang maglunsad ng drone strike sa mga inosenteng sibilyan sa Gitnang Silangan?

Ang pangunahing panawagan pa rin ay paglaya. Patuloy pa rin kasi ang impluwensiya at pagkontrol ni Uncle Sam sa ating lipunan: sa ekonomiya, pulitika, at kultura. Nakakaumay na nga minsang marinig ang chant na ‘imperyalismo ibagsak’, pero ito kasi ang reyalidad. Paulit-ulit kasi ‘di naririnig. Paulit-ulit hanggang marinig na oo, mga bilanggo pa rin kasi tayo.

——— Gumising sa mga balitang hatid ni Dean Carlo Valmeo at ng buong Perspective Live team sa Today’s Rundown, Sabado 10 a.m., sa Facebook, Twitter at Spotify ng pahayagang ito.

Louder than bombs UNDER SCRUTINY

By Reuben Pio Martinez

February: the season of love. As lovers traded flowers and letters to the mood of sweet serenades, various people across Quezon had to get theirs from homes empty of families, isolated jail cells, or even the grave. It was early February when the families of Ronnel Bartalo and Eduardo Torrenueva, two confirmed members of the New People’s Army (NPA), got bombshells of their own.

The two of them were killed in action. With heavy hearts and teary eyes, their families and friends only had their now lifeless bodies to bid farewell to for the final time. “Have a heart?” they asked the Philippine Army, who had none then tried to take their bodies from the grieving families. Much like the typical fairy tale’s Prince Charmings they view themselves to be, in their horses they rode and in their armors they clashed. Their swords raised for the people that didn’t need their kind of saving.

Then, it rained hell. Aerial bombings rocked the province, leaving at least 26,000 individuals and several families horrified. Soldiers and their uppers may have dreamed this as their

“true love’s kiss,” but for the unsuspecting civilians and everyone else, this was the kiss of death.

But the army’s love [for] bombing knew no limits. Before they shouted to the skies “bombs away,” coconut farmers Ruben Istokado and Renante de Leon were illegally arrested under the pretense that they were NPA members (with de Leon even being mistaken for another, unrelated person). Even before that, human rights alliance Karapatan had to endure harassment from military men for distributing relief goods post-Ulysses, while the Quezon branch’s secretary-general Genelyn Dichoso had to be arrested along with nine others on trumped-up quarantine violation charges. Dichoso, meanwhile, would have to deal with a separate trumped-up charge herself: attempted homicide, which many have found dubious.

Like birds of the same feather, the Philippine Army and the police have all thrived in terror-tagging and power playing beyond Quezon, and even before the Terror Law was signed. For every progressive or even any innocent bystander that they baselessly tag as a terrorist, that’s one family torn apart and one community having to reel from the loss of a brother or sister.

This is ultimately their hot potato: the

collateral damage that came in the wake of their Wild, Wild Western style of national defense.

They brand activists and other civilians as enemies of the state for standing firm against injustices, drag their names through the mud to make a boogeymen for their publicity materials, and immortalize them as something more worthless than a subhuman. In their hubris, they define kidnapping families as a safeguard from a non-existing monster and destroying any goodwill that is left in a community. Ask the Asedillo family, who were caught in the Kalayaan 4 case about what it felt like to be taken against their will for their “safety.”

All at the cost of ignoring the true curse that haunted the country: the imbalance of power between the “all loving state” and those who receive love bombing from the other side of the trigger. The result? The state as the pied piper sang of temptation, power, and protection against the darkness, and here they stand and wonder why many have decided to resist.

Ironically, for all of the love that they boast, other names not linked to any battalion or police unit are mentioned when it comes to genuine love for the people. This February 14, one name stood out on his death anniversary. He was John Carlo Alberto, and about two years ago, the once would be Doctor of Veterinary

Medicine (DVM) turned revolutionary was killed in an encounter with the military. His death is remembered by family and friends, and his life and deeds are forever honored by many more.

Whenever their stories are remembered, most fittingly for Alberto, it is always in the context of their unconditional love for the people and the nation. They were not rebels without a cause, as for many, one was a good son and a great student leader who served his college once as a councilor.

Indeed, there is a curse that needs to be broken, and it’s neither communism nor rebellion.

Rather, it’s the lack of justice given to those brutally murdered by the state and the corrupt elite, the lack of accessible quality education and healthcare, and the lack of lands and seas being left to the names of ailing farmers and fishers.

Hot potatoes go cold overtime, and like the state’s long list of mistakes, eventually now they rot and stink for the whole nation to smell. If the state has a heart, then they would see the people they see as boogeymen as human beings, but they don’t. For the cries of the marginalized and the oppressed are louder than bombs, may we remember that there are no dragons in their war.

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Isang prente kontra ATL

MGA KUHA NI KRISTINE PAULA BAUTISTA

Kumilos ang iba’t ibang sektor ng Timog Katagalugan sa Crossing, Calamba upang ipagpanawagan ang pagbabasura ng Terror Law sa unang araw ng oral arguments sa Korte Suprema noong ika-2 ng Pebrero. Maaaring maapektuhan ang mga mamamayang nakikibaka ng Timog Katagalugan dahil sa malawak at malabo na saklaw ng Terror Law, lalo na’t isa ang rehiyong ito sa mga pinakaapektado sa programa kontra-insurhensiya ng pamahalaan.