Stop NCAP protest caravan tomorrow am

 

DSWD stampede could have been prevented by universal aid--labor group

Photo from Manila Times

 

The labor group Partido Manggagawa (PM) on Tuesday said that targeted or non-universal systems of providing cash aid and other social protection programs to poor Filipinos will always face administrative gridlock if not chaos like what happened to yesterday’s roll out of DSWD’s educational assistance.

 

“When poor people cross the lines because they were ill-informed of proper qualifications and procedures, the problem therefore lies not with their unruly behaviors but primarily with the non-universal and non-permanent system of social protection,” stated PM Chair Renato Magtubo.

 

Magtubo was referring to prior announcements made by Secretary Erwin Tulfo himself as regards qualification and limited venue for the payout of educational assistance.

 

The DSWD announced earlier that 4Ps beneficiaries are no longer qualified for education aid, only for the agency to issue further clarification later that a certificate of indigency is no longer required as a copy of enrollment certificate would suffice to qualify in the program, thus the confusion.

 

“Secretary Tulfo, with his signature sharp eye and acid tongue for even the smallest amount of ‘kapalpakan’ of even the lowest public official, should have learned hard lessons from the chaotic roll out of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) in the earlier stage of the program. Hindi pala simpleng naitu-Tulfo ang problema ng kahirapan,” said Magtubo.

 

Magtubo said the DSWD episode yesterday also reminded him of the Wowowee stampede which killed at least 70 people.

 

“The government should constantly be reminded of the fact that unsolved problems of poverty and misery sent waves of people crashing into the gates of Philsports Arena in 2006. Yesterday was a reminder to Secretary Tulfo that graduating from poverty in a country as highly unequal as the Philippines needs less pep talk but serious structural reforms.”

 

The labor group suggested that varied forms of social protection be placed into a basket under a system that is universal and permanent in nature such as universal health care, education for all, unemployment insurance, employment guarantee, living pension for the elderly, and other forms.

 

“Universalization eventually reforms the system of patronage today where the sick, the unemployed, the elderly, the children and their parents must assume debts of gratitude from politicians and other government officials who were given special privileges and access to public funds for dole out,” explained Magtubo.

 

On the contrary, added the labor leader and incumbent Councilor of the City of Marikina, targeted systems create discrimination and inequality even among the poor who need to qualify themselves first as either belonging to the poorest of the poor, near poor, or an indigent in general.

 

“Para mareporma, ang scholarship fund o educational assistance, halimbawa, ay diretso na dapat sa mga iskwelahan at mga ahensya ng gubyerno na lamang ang mag-usap at mag-account. Ganundin sa healthcare, ang pasyente ay hindi na kailangang dumaan kanino mang opisyal dahil ang bahay o tanggapan ni honorable ay hindi naman pagamutan,” concluded Magtubo.

22 August 2022

Women workers to Tulfo: Hindi nakakalalaki ang VAWC

From Wikipedia

 

The militant Partido Manggagawa took issue with the stand of Senator Raffy Tulfo to amend the VAWC Law as codified his proposed Senate Bill 211 (SBN 211).

 

“Kinakailangan magpakita ng datos at matibay na batayan si Sen. Tulfo para magkaroon ng basehan ang kanyang panukalang baguhin ang VAWC para bigyan ng ispesyal na katayuan ang lalaki kumpara sa nanay at anak para mabigyan ng pantay na proteksyon at parusa sa SBN 211,” according to Judy Ann Miranda, Secretary-General of Partido Manggagawa (PM).

 

The group argued that a special law for women and children, such as the Republic Act No. 9262 or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Act of 2004, exists because domestic abuse against women and children has been pervasive and entrenched in Philippine society. Thus, it is not a law against men.

 

“We do not discount the fact that there may be men who are domestically abused by their wives/partners. In which case, there are provisions in the Penal Code (Articles 262, 263 and 265) and Article 72 of the new Family Code which they can use to file a complaint against their partners,” Miranda added.

 

The Philippines signed the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) 15 July 1980 and ratified it on 5 August 1981. After more than three decades, the problem remains. At the global level, the World Health Organization (WHO, 2021) estimated that “1 in 3 (30%) of women worldwide have been subjected to either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime,” mostly intimate partner violence.

 

“However, it should be clear to us why there is a special law specifically on domestic violence for women and children. RA 9262 gives out the message that wife-beating is not a trivial matter in Philippine society and that these abuses warrant a guarantee of protection and support from the government. We do not want male violence that is pervasive and entrenched in our society to be safely ignored and ridiculed by a proposed bill that would warrant equal protection for men,” Miranda concluded.

22 August 2022 

Groups condemn demolition of farmworkers' homes in Negros

 

LA CASTELLANA, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL - Civil society groups working on agrarian reform and rural development condemn the illegal demolition and the sustained harassment of farmworkers of Hacienda Vicenta, Sitio Cambagting, Barangay Cabacungan, La Castellana on August 10, 2022.

 

Kaisahan-Negros, Partido Manggagawa-Negros, Dagyaw Paralegals, and the Negros Occidental Federation of Farmer Associations denounced the “illegal, inhumane, and violent demolition” of the homes of Hacienda Vicenta farmworkers, because there was no court order presented and the demolition proceeded even though children were still inside their houses.

 

Based on the sworn affidavit of Deana Estrada, 53, one of the residents and farmworkers in the hacienda, her niece called her home as unknown men were destroying her house on the morning of August 10, Wednesday.

 

Despite pleas to delay the demolition because children were inside the house, the unknown men continued to destroy their home.

 

”Nagtawag siya liwat nga guba na ang akon balay,” Estrada continued.

 

“The perpetrators didn’t care and didn’t show any remorse even if they may have killed an innocent child in the process of destroying the homes and harassing the farmers,” said Inday Goco, the Secretary-General of PM-Negros.

 

According to the residents, the perpetrators also threatened them, saying they were only getting started and that there would be more attacks to come.

 

“Nagkadto ako sa barangay para mangayo bulig pero hambal sang sekretarya wala didto si Kapitan gani nagkadto ako sa Cabacungan Police Station pero naghambal sila  nga indi sila kabulig kag ginpabalik ako sa  Barangay para  magparecord,” Estrada lamented.

 

“It is unfortunate and very disappointing that the duty-bearers and law enforcers didn’t stay true to their mandate to ‘serve and protect’ the farmers asking for their help,” Goco expressed.

 

“This incident is also a call to action for the Department of Agrarian Reform because if only the land claims of the farmers were swiftly and rightfully resolved, such violence need not happen,” noted Jec Magbato of KAISAHAN-Negros.

 

DAR's processing of their land claims was halted because of the Land Use Cases Committee’s decision granting the application for conversion of LN Agustin, the landowner.

 

KAISAHAN argues that since the land is irrigated, as certified by National Irrigation Administration, it should have never been converted.  Under the CARL or R.A. 6657, irrigated and irrigable lands are considered "non-negotiable for conversion."

 

The groups also urged the respective government agencies, such as DAR, the security sector, and the local government, to act on the land claims of the farmworkers and an investigation on the incident that occurred in Hacienda Vicenta. They sscommit to work with the agencies and the community for the protection and peaceful resolution of their land rights claim. #

 

Partido Manggagawa - Negros

DOLE asked to issue order on riders’ employment status

The motorcycle riders’ rights group Kapatiran sa Dalawang Gulong (Kagulong) called on the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to issue an order on the employment status of app-based riders in the light of the recent decision by a National Labor Relation Commission (NLRC) arbiter. The arbiter ruled that seven Foodpanda riders based in Davao were regular employees of the app and found the company guilty of illegal dismissal. The labor case stemmed from the suspension by the app for 10 years of 43 Foodpanda riders who planned in July 2021 a “log-off” protest over low pay.

 

“This is a landmark decision in clarifying the employee-employer relationship of app riders. We urge the DOLE to settle the issue by issuing an order based on this decision. It is long overdue,” insisted Don Pangan, Kagulong secretary general.

 

He added that “We are also calling on the DOLE to deliver its commitment to convene the Technical Working Group involving rider’s groups, trade unions, worker’s organizations and concerned government agencies as agreed upon the tripartite consultations convened in the build up to Labor Day 2021.”

 

Kagulong had long advocated for recognizing app riders as employees so they can enjoy the protection of labor standards and rights, including social protection and job security. The group earlier criticized the Labor Advisory 14-21 issued by the DOLE in July 2021 that did not resolve the dispute. The Labor Advisory was issued in the wake of the Davao Foodpanda labor row and other disputes involving app riders.

 

In November 2020, Kagulong led some 700 Foodpanda riders in a protest action at the DOLE national office to seek resolution of their grievances over reduced pay and unsafe conditions DOLE officials who met leaders of Kagulong and the Metro Manila Foodpanda riders promised to act on the complaint.

 

The Foodpanda protests in Davao and Manila correlate with a global study (http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/16880.pdf), which found out that food delivery riders launched the greatest number of protests among app or platform workers. The most prominent grievance concerned pay although employment status also figured as a secondary issue. In Asian countries such as Indonesia and India, gig workers have formed associations or unions. Similar organizing and struggles by food delivery riders in Europe, Australia and Latin America was also revealed in the study. 

Kagulong

August 2, 2022