Feb. 25, 2010 is Blog Action Day: The Real Heroes of EDSA

Twenty four years ago, our people toppled a tyrant. On February 25, 2010 let us re-tell their stories.

On Thursday, we are enjoining all young Filipinos to blog about the stories of the real heroes of EDSA: our parents, grandparents, ates and kuyas, titos and titas, ninong and ninangs.

We may have been too young then or were not even born yet, but we can ask them to recount their tales of real-life heroism to us. What prompted them to join the uprising? What were their thoughts and feelings? What did they wear, eat, chant? How did it feel to be able to be surrounded by overwhelming unity and patriotism among millions of other heroes marching in the streets on those three historic days.

Since EDSA was mainly about the people’s resistance to martial law, you can ask them their experience during the martial law era, how they fought, even before the culmination of the people’s mass movement that was the EDSA People Power Uprising. You may also post old photos, artworks and/or anti-martial law memorabilia.

Link your blog entries to this post and grab the button below by copying the link to mark your participation. We will start posting links of entries in our website at exactly 12:00 noon on February 25.

On February 25, let us give proper honor and citation to the millions of Filipinos who made EDSA People Power possible. ###

Source: http://kabataanpartylist.com/blog/the-real-heroes-of-edsa1/

UPM USC Statement

The UP Manila University Student Council Statement

on the Illegal Arrest, Detention, and Torture of 43 Health Workers in Morong

The University Student Council speaks in behalf of more than two thousand young students of medicine, nursing, public health, dentistry, pharmacy, and other allied health professions of the University of the Philippines Manila – the national health sciences center.

We strongly condemn the illegal arrest and detention and the inhumane acts of torture of the 43 health workers, which includes medical doctors, nurses, and community health workers (CHWs), undergoing a health training in Morong, Rizal almost two weeks ago. We students demand for the immediate release of the health workers who are, at present, still detained in Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal, and still with limited access to their families and relatives and even to their lawyers.

We also denounce the harassment and intimidation, and the violation of domicile done by the military and the police to Dr. Melecia Velmonte and her household. Dr. Velmonte, professor emeritus of the UP College of Medicine and an eminent expert in infectious disease, is known to us, young students, as an inspiring community health advocate, educator, and researcher, who is more than willing to lend not just her training facility but also her knowledge and expertise to fellow health workers, and is not deserving of such lack of respect from the police and the military.

Moreover, we, students of health professions, also wish to convey our apprehension. Our professional education in UP taught us, not just to cure sickness and relieve pain, but also to reach out to fellowmen who need us the most – those who inhabit far-flung communities, those who were marginalized by geographic, cultural, and even sociopolitical barriers.

Despite this incident, the desire to serve the underserved remains in our hearts and minds. However, the recent tragedy also inculcated fear amongst us, as it revealed to us how perilous the world is for those who, with the purest of intentions, reach out to the disenfranchised. Today, a doctor that traverses mountains in the provinces can be easily accused of being an NPA or a rebel, and gatherings such as health trainings like the one held in Morong can be planted with guns and grenades and tagged as a bomb-making activity. Worse, health workers can now be arrested and abducted without due process, or can be gunned down, or can even be buried alive. This reality is unacceptable, and all sectors of Philippine society, with the government in the lead, must do something to reverse this trend immediately.

We, future health workers of this country, are willing to make the sacrifice, to fill the gaps, to make up for the essential things that our government was not able to provide our people – basic quality and affordable health care, opportunities for better and meaningful life, and a ready ear that listens to the needs of men, women, and children. But we too demand from our government that it create an environment that will enable us to help them provide the health rights of our people. We call on the government, most especially the military and the police, to stop all forms of harassment of health workers and of all Filipino professionals who genuinely love and serve our country at large, especially the countryside.

We also call the Arroyo government to take immediate action in making accountable the military and police forces behind this deplorable act of cruelty and unlawfulness. The illegal arrest, harassment, and detention, and the acts of torture done by the military as reported by the Commission on Human Rights are clear violations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, of which the Philippines is a signatory. We remind the government, especially the military and the police, that it is its prime duty to enforce these rules and protect the welfare of citizens, and not to be the first to violate them.

We also call for greater accountability on the part of the military and police for their defiance of the Supreme Court’s issuance of a writ of habeas corpus last week. As already expressed in the newspapers and by legal experts, this act might set a “dangerous precedent on how habeas corpus orders would be dealt with in the future.” Thus, we demand that those responsible for this disobedience and insubordination be immediately dealt with accordingly.

Lastly, but most importantly, as young students of health professions and as advocates for greater health for all Filipinos, we express our deepest admiration for the 43 health workers, and for all the health professionals who choose to forego opportunities in the metropolis or even overseas in order to work and serve the rural areas, for their unwavering passion and commitment to serve their fellow Filipinos in times of sickness and pain. Where the government is not providing health care to the poor, they are there. Where service rendered is not properly compensated or even appreciated, there they continually serve. We know that neither blindfolding nor electrocution, not even death itself, can kill their indomitable spirit. And that spirit inspires us to continue our education with diligence and responsibility, so that we can use our acquired knowledge and skills to care for the sick, to love our country, and eventually to heal our wounded land.

Free the 43 NOW!

Solon condemns sexual harassment of Morong 43 women

February 15, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Solon condemns sexual harassment of Morong 43 women

Signature drive launched in campuses


Representative Raymond ‘Mong’ Palatino today condemned the alleged harassment and sexual molestation of detained female health workers by their military guards in Camp Capinpin.

“It’s despicable, a very, very serious allegation. What bothers me most is that the AFP is easily dismissing it as ‘black propaganda’ instead of investigating the matter.”

“If they do not investigate immediately, the AFP would then be coddling and protecting the perpetrators. If this is true, it is are a clear violation of all humanitarian, criminal and moral laws and perpetrators should be punished, (and) more reason to release Morong 43 ASAP,” he said.

Palatino also called on the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to conduct a probe on the complaints of the female detainees.

“It is not easy for a woman to disclose to the public that she has been sexually abused, especially under duress.”


43,000 signatures

Kabataan Partylist also announced that it will launch a campus-based signature drive calling for the immediate release of the Morong 43.

The youth party-list aims to gather 43,000 signatures before classes end this March. The signatures will be submitted to Senate and Congress committees on human rights, Supreme Court, and AFP Commander-In-Chief Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Statement of SAMASA-PA on the Dismissal of the SR from the BOR

The Gambit of Despotism
Statement of SAMASA-PA on the Dismissal of the Student Regent From the Board of Regents

12 February 2010

The issue is not about the inability of Student Regent Charisse Bernadine Bañez to file an LOA or residency on time. It is about the tyrannical ploys of the U.P. Administration to depose a member that stalwartly contests and exposes its manipulative stances and effectively railroads its vested interests. It is not about unseen technicalities. It is about student representation.

Bañez's track record is one of consistent service to her constituents and the people. Despite the numerous schemes and threats posed by the UPLB Administration, Bañez remained at the forefront of the students in upholding their rights and welfare. Despite the coercions and black propaganda she has encountered, she remained unfaltering and still continued to lead the students' struggle against repression by the UPLB Administration.

Even with Bañez's selection as the new Student Regent, she still came across difficulties from the schemes manipulated by the UPLB and UP System Administration to prevent her from sitting as SR. It can be remembered that exactly 3 days after she was selected as SR through the General Assembly of Student Councils (GASC), several cases against her emerged. These cases caused a two-month delay of her confirmation as SR. Nevertheless, because of the students' collective effort to defend the Office of the Student Regent (OSR) and to preserve the democratic SR selection process, we overcame the challenge and won the struggle for representation in the Board of Regents (BOR).

As SR, Bañez served the students well. She was never delinquent in her responsibility of upholding the students' rights inside the BOR. She was never absent in every Board meeting and even once, she never came late. But once again the Administration chose to deny us student representation by unseating Bañez, the only voice of the students inside the BOR. With an Administration wherein various impositions of anti-student policies are prominent in every academic year, campus repression has always been the trend.

During the height of the university's current crisis of student representation in the BOR, it must be remembered that this is the Administration which forwarded commercialization and privatization schemes in our University. This is the same Administration who ruled out the collection of the students' fund in UPLB thus leaving the Student Councils as well as the Student Publication nothing but their own resources to go on with their services. It must be remembered that this is the same Administration that Bañez blatantly exposed and valiantly faced because of its anti-student policies.

The vicious step of removing a SR that has been critical of the administration' s moves and vocal in opposing its anti-student courses of action is therefore a blatant manifestation of repression. It is a clear repression of our rights as students. Desperate to remove anyone that blocks their malevolent ruses, the Administration chose to unseat the SR instead of ensuring the continuous representation of the students. Threatened by the SR's consistency to her mandate of genuinely serving the students, the Administration became alarmed that the SR might expose further machinations of despotism.

But despite the crisis that we are facing, certain entities are riding on the issue to forward their ambitious, untimely and selfish craving of amending the CRSRS which was ratified by the students all over the U.P. system through a referendum. Some groups are even abiding by the Administration' s line. They claim to be one with the students, but behind these deceptive words, they remain silent and lethargic and failed to lead the students from urgently addressing the issue. The claims to being pro-active therefore fall to the ground as these groups fail to present an alternative that does not compromise the interests of the students.

This is not the time to ride on the issue to forward one's selfish desires. Nor is this the time to copy-paste and disseminate information that comes from a single website (the UP Administration' s) and misrepresent this as looking at every side of the issue. This is not the time to act as mouthpieces of an Administration that has time and again trampled the rights and welfare of the students. Such an act only makes these groups unwitting adherents of the plan to phase-out U.P. High, the Large Lecture Class Scheme and the PGH privatization. That, in effect, is consenting to political repression in our University. That only misleads and creates division among the students.

As the largest sector in an academic institution which carries the tag "bastion of democracy" in our country, we students are the decisive forces that can bring-forth essential feats. This is not the time to divide. Rather, now is the time to link our arms together and fight for our right to representation in the BOR. Considering the current crisis in our University, we are in dire need of a representation in the BOR. However, that representation also needs the action of the students. We can never attain that unless we make a stand, a unified stand that serves the interests of the students and does not deflect the very purpose of the office that has long been defended by the past Iskolars ng Bayan.

REINSTATE CHARISSE BERNADINE BAÑEZ TO THE BOARD OF REGENTS!
DEFEND THE OFFICE OF THE STUDENT REGENT! FIGHT FOR OUR RIGHT TO REPRESENTATION!
ISKOLAR NG BAYAN, TUMINDIG AT IPAGLABAN ANG ATING KARAPATAN!

University of the Philippines - Visayas
Sandigan para sa Mag-aaral at Sambayanan Party Alliance (SAMASA-PA) at KABATAAN Party List

DEFEND UP HIGH

The University of the Philippines – Visayas is once again facing another challenge. Despite the resistance of many of the Iskolars ng Bayan, faculty and community, the scheme of gradually phasing out the UPV Cebu High School has been railroaded.

Last 8 January 2010, the UPV Cebu College Dean Enrique Avila wrote a letter to U.P. President Emerlinda Roman stating that "…the College shall soon propose the gradual phase out of the high school effective first semester of school year 2010-2011. With this, the high school admission test proposed for March 2010 will consequently be cancelled."

This letter was then followed by a memorandum issued by the Dean himself to the Professional Education Department (PED) Chair Rosario Montaño on the suspension of the acceptance of High School Admission Test (HSAT) of U.P. Cebu High School. The memorandum states that due to the lack of faculty resources, the profile of the current faculty complement servicing the high school, the refocusing of the College's academic programs and plans and the priorities set by the UP System and the new UP Charter of 2008, the UPV Cebu College is no longer in the position to sustain ably the implementation of the high school. Moreover it enunciated that the acceptance of applicants for the proposed HSAT on March be suspended due to the pending resolution of the proposal to phase out the high school gradually.

The desperate moves of the Dean to abolish the high school did not go through apt process of consulting the students and the faculty and does not hold ample basis to act upon.

Since the establishment of the U.P. Cebu High School, it has been faced threats of closure because of the lack of budget. But it still continued to exist because of its mandate of Democratized Access to Education wherein, under this policy, all U.P. High Schools is a program that helps economically destitute but intellectually deserving students gain access to tertiary education. Moreover, it also serves as a laboratory high school for innovative teaching strategies premeditated to better prepare these deserving students for access to tertiary education, particularly in University of the Philippines, where they can avail quality college education at a low cost.

As Iskolars ng Bayan, we have always played a crucial role on shaping momentous changes and junctures in our history. We remain steadfast in all our endeavors, whether it is a national or local issue that affects the nation. We never faltered even in the midst of Martial Rule. Instead, with our arms linked together, we faced every struggle and continued our immeasurable commitment of serving not only the students but also the people.

Today, we, the Iskolars ng Bayan, have a vital and decisive task to act upon. We cannot stay unvoiced and unresponsive while our future and our rights as students are being compromised for untimely and contemptible scheme that deflects the primary purpose of our University.

The Iskolars ng Bayan are wide awake and are ready to lead the fight for asserting their right to accessible quality yet affordable education. Once again, time has brought us into the arena where the secret weapons to triumph are critical minds and unity.

We believe that U.P., as an insignia of freethinking education, must uphold its commitment in uplifting quality education which is non-discriminating and is accessible to all. Thus, we recognize the role of U.P. High Schools in advancing the value of nationalism and freedom among its students for a more developed and progressive Philippine society.

We greatly convey our unity to the Students, Student Councils, Student Organizations, Faculty Members and all the constituents of the University of the Philippines – Visayas Cebu College who have spoken their opposition to Dean Enrique M. Avila's ploy on the gradual abolition of UPV Cebu High School. We contest the moves of phasing out the UPV Cebu High School on the following grounds:

• The attempt of phasing out the UPV Cebu High School by Dean Enrique Avila does not serve the interest and welfare of the students, the faculties and the community. UPV Cebu High School, for many years, has served as an institution that provides the youth affordable, accessible and quality education through its mandate of Democratized Access to Education. With this step of phasing out the high school, U.P. therefore closes its doors to those want to avail a quality education which U.P. can offer.

• Phasing out of UPV Cebu High School is a step railroading further commercialization of U.P. Education. This plan can be linked to the gradual state abandonment among State Colleges and Universities. With the budget proposed by the Department of Budget and Management to U.P. and the whole education, which was cut from the previous year's budget, it can be drawn out that the government may be making steps to slowly desert their responsibility of allotting greater state subsidies to its SCUs which results to disbanding of other state-owned universities in the country.

• This move by Dean Enrique M. Avila does not undergo due process of consultation among students and faculty members. Moreover, the High School Faculty has not received a copy of the proposal by the dean. This is an apparent move ignoring RA 9500, also known as the new U.P. Charter as of 2009, in which it was stipulated under Section 3 (h) that "As the National University, the University of the Philippines shall provide democratic governance in the University based on collegiality, representation, accountability, transparency and active participation of its constituents. " Moreover, pursuant to Section 13 (c) of the charter, only the Board of Regents (BOR) has the power to approve institution, merger or abolition of academic programs upon recommendation of the University Council of the constituent university. Furthermore, the letter dated last 8 January 2010 to President Emerlinda Roman by Dean Avila did not even pass through proper channels by having it pass first to the UPV Chancellor. With this, the bid of phasing out U.P. High School in Cebu without due process and ample grounds is a despicable move that does not recognize the rights and welfare of its constituents.

• Closure of U.P. High is not the answer for the lack of budget and aging facilities of the college. It is not as well an obstruction to make UPVCC a constituent university of UP. It must be regarded that the budget for the university has been gradually cut each year. However, this must not be the basis of imposing policies that can downbeat the constituents. Instead of eliminating a significant limb of the University, being in an educational institution, University officials, together with its constituents, must assert and fight for greater state subsidy to answer the call of insufficiency.

• This step of phasing out the UPV Cebu High School will aggravate the colonial, commercialized, repressive and fascist characteristics of U.P. and education. As a bastion of democracy, the University of the Philippines must provide an affordable, accessible and quality education among its students and to all. It must also cater the interest and welfare of its constituents – the students, faculty, staff and the community. Phasing out an academic institution that serves the interest of the people such as U.P. High steals not only the right of the people to education but also their right to have a bright future.

We call on all students, student organizations, student leaders, teachers, staff and all UPV constituents to avert the dire steps of phasing out the UPV Cebu High School. The desperate moves of Dean Enrique Avila to discontinue the existence of U.P. High in Cebu despite the honor and service that the high school has given to the University and the community have set profound disgruntlement among the students, teachers and the people in the community.

We strongly deem the sovereign right that lays on the students, the youth and the people to totally succeed the struggle to overpower the ambitious ideas that undermine the interests and the welfare of the people with irrefutable principles that can genuinely unite the students and the people and can bring forth meaningful victory.

Signed by (As of 22 January 2010):

Katipunan ng mga Sangguniang Mag-aaral sa U.P. (KASAMA sa U.P.)

UPV College of Arts and Sciences – Student Council (UPV CAS-SC)

UPV College of Fisheries and Ocean Science – Student Council (UPV CFOS-SC)

UPV School of Technology – Student Council (UPV SOTECH-SC)

Yupihay

National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP)

KABATAAN Partylist

League of Filipino Students (LFS)

AnakbayanPagbutlak (Official Publication of CAS)

College Editors' Guild of the Philippines (CEGP)

Sandigan ng Mag-aaral at Sambayanan (SAMASA)

Samahan ng Mag-aaral at Kabataang Kababaihan (SAMAKA-KA)

UPV Oikos