RH bill, labor protection pushed on International Youth Day

PRESS RELEASE

Partido ng Manggagawa-Kabataan

12 August 2011

The youth arm of militant labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) called on Congress to end debates on the reproductive health bill and finally pass the measure so that efforts and energies are now shifted to finer details for its implementation to bring immediate impact on poor women and their families.

“Measures such as the RH bill and new labor protection policies are needed in the face of the catasthropic impact of the global economic crisis on the working class especially women and youth,” Partido ng Manggagawa – Kabataan  (PM-K) said in a statement as it joins other youth groups in a rally today at the House of Representatives and the Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC) in Quezon City in time for the celebration of International Youth Day.

 At the House of Representatives youth groups pressed for the immediate passage of the RH bill saying the measure has already been overly debated while women, especially young mothers, suffer daily from unattended reproductive health needs.  Later at the OSHC, the groups demanded strict enforcement of safety and other labor standards in the country, citing the case of a Korean-owned shipyard Hanjin where workers die due to work-related accidents.  All of the company’s 21,000 workforce also work as contractuals.  The youth group is opposed to the policy of contractualization.

“We want a change in the prevailing environment of joblessness, deteriorating working conditions and lack of social protection for the present and future generation of young workers, especially women,” said Carol Hernandez of the PM-K, referring to this year’s International Youth Day theme, “Change Our World”.

Hernandez said President Aquino’s “matuwid na daan” to be relevant to the present realities of the youth must be translated into “bagong landas” as old rhetorics of “change” or “wang-wang” cannot undo the damage done to people and the environment by economic and social policies under the regime of privatization, deregulation and economic liberalization which all favor the interests of rich nations.

“There must be change in policies.  Without it the young generation will continue to suffer the life of indignity under the harsh environment of poverty and desperation.  We want jobs, a regular good paying jobs.   We want a secure and ecologically livable future,” concludes Hernandez.

Labor group hopeful of the release of political prisoners as peace talks make headway

The labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) is hopeful the release of political prisoners can be made possible as conditions for the resumption of peace negotiations with the country’s rebel groups get a boost from the Tokyo meeting between President Benigno S. Aquino III and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). 

“We hope that political prisoners reap the early gains from the improving environment for peace talks”, stated PM secretary-general Judy Ann Miranda. 

PM together with the members of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) trooped to the Department of Justice this morning to press for the release of all political prisoners.

Miranda said political prisoners should be considered by the government as “beneficiaries” of peace even prior to the conclusion of final peace agreements with the revolutionary movements.

“In fact an act of magnanimity can be extended by the government to political prisoners even without the peace talks as many of them have already served their full sentences from many years of detention,” argued Miranda, citing the case of Juanito Itaas who had been serving prison terms since 1989.

There are still more than 300 political prisoners languishing in different jails all over the country according to human rights groups.  All of them were accused of having links with either the communist or separatist movements but were held for as common criminals.

Political prisoners at the National Bilibid Prison went on hunger strike since President Aquino’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) to appeal for their immediate and unconditional release.   After the dialogue with human rights groups and DOJ officials last week, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima ordered prison officials to look into the conditions of the hunger strikers.

We call on GMA to do a Zubiri

Press Statement

August 4, 2011

Renato Magtubo

Many were happy with the resignation of Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri in the face of the widening expose on electoral fraud in the 2004 and 2007 elections. Still even more are sad that Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo still has not resigned yet.

We call on GMA to do a Zubiri. We urge her to follow his good example. Like Zubiri, GMA does not have to admit that she did cheat. But her resignation nonetheless will give a bigger berth for the investigation of cheating in the presidential polls of 2004. But GMA doing a Zubiri may of course be wishful thinking given that resignation will wipe out any residual immunity and power that she still enjoys as a congresswoman.

By resigning, Zubiri wanted to take the heat away from him since he apparently is not Teflon-coated like GMA. Or to say the same thing, that Zubiri is not made of the same thick hide as GMA.

We hope that GMA makes a speedy recovery from her spine surgery so that she can face in the soonest possible time the probe not just on electoral fraud but on other anomalies during her administration.

Labor group to P-Noy: Do a Cory, free all political prisoners

On Cory Aquino's death anniversary, militants rally at DOJ to call on PNoy to release all political prisoners

PRESS RELEASE

01 August 2011

President Benigno S. Aquino III “can do a Cory” by ordering the unconditional release of all remaining political prisoners (PPs), the labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) said in a statement as the country commemorates the second death anniversary of the former President.

PM joined the families of political prisoners in a rally held this morning at the Department of Justice organized by human rights groups to press for the release of all the remaining political prisoners in the country.

“Giving political prisoners a chance for new life is a good way of remembering his mother  who was credited for ordering the unconditional release of all political detainees during her time,” said PM secretary-general Judy Ann Miranda.

PM leaders visited the political prisoners at NBP’s Building 11 yesterday. Miranda said ten (10) political prisoners led by Juanito Itaas, the longest-serving political prisoner in the country, are still on full hunger strike while others are on sympathy fasting.

The labor group likewise urged Department of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima to include this issue on top of her many priorities as she had promised to during her dialogue with the political prisoners sometime in 2009 when she was still the chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights. 

All of the more than 300 political prisoners in the country were jailed for non-bailable crimes such as murder and kidnapping rather than for political offenses related to their political activities.   Itaas for instance was implicated for the murder of US Col. James Rowe 22 years ago.  He was arrested in 1989 in Davao City. 

Like Itaas, most of the political prisoners are ordinary farmers who were accused of being NPA rebels and were locked up for life on trump-up charges.

“They have suffered enough.  Many of our political prisoners have in fact served in full their life sentences and therefore are already qualified for unconditional pardon,” concluded Miranda.