“Aktibista kami noon fifty years ago, aktibista pa rin kami ngayon,” Judy Taguiwalo proudly exclaimed in front of the crowd at Mendiola Bridge.
Taguiwalo, along with other senior and young activists marched towards the historic Mendiola bridge to commemorate the historic First Quarter Storm of 1970. The FQS was a series of gigantic protests that shook the nation’s capital.
Activists called for an end to what they perceived as the root causes of poverty: imperialism, bureaucrat capitalism and feudalism. Mendiola bridge, due to its proximity to the seat of power, Malacañang Palace, became the battleground for intense street fighting that broke out on January 30, 1970 in what was later known as the ‘Battle of Mendiola.’
Taguiwalo, an activist and social worker, was once appointed as Secretary of Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) under the Duterte administration in 2016. But her term as DSWD head was cut short after the Commission of Appointments rejected her appointment. The post was then given to former Army chief Rolando Joselito Bautista.
In the protest rally, Taguiwalo lambasted the policies implemented by the Duterte administration.
“Buhay na buhay ang burukrata kapitalismo. Nagbabadya ang pasismo,” said Taguiwalo
[Bureaucrat capitalism is very much alive. There is foreboding fascism.]
The former DSWD chair criticized the implementation of Executive Order 70, which she said would further suppress people’s rights.
Issued by Duterte on December 2018, the E.O. 70 institutionalized the creation a ‘national task force to end local armed conflict’ or the NTF ELCAC.
Human rights groups and people’s organizations criticized the order as a move towards open Martial law sans the declaration.
The NTF ELCAC will co-oopt or subsume the bureaucracy (local government units and other civilian government agencies) in the anti-communist insurgency campaign of the government, according to Karapatan Metro Manila.
The rights group added that aside from the NTF ELCAC, the Duterte cabinet is said to be the most-militarized in the region or the world, where army retirees have been appointed to key positions in the Duterte administration.
Scores of activists are currently detained on charges of illegal firearms and explosives following raids on search warrants in offices in October and November 2019, and some were arrested on alias warrants, old arrest warrants that have not been quashed and names of new suspects added or warrants on charges on incidents of military and New People’s Army clashes. Activists from Metro Manila have been victims to such mode of searches and arrests, said the rights group.
The state’s armed forces, as implementors of E.O. 70, was also accused of pocketing money by producing ‘fake surrenderees’. The accusation became more glaring in the controversy of ‘photoshopped’ rebel surrenderees released before 2019 ended that the army has admitted to, but still maintained the number of surrenderees were true. Activist groups pointed out that the military would cash in P50,000 to P65,000 for each rebel and they reported more than 300 ‘surrenderres’ in the Photoshopped image.
“Fifty years ago, hindi nagpapasindak ang mamamayan, hanggang ngayon hindi tayo magpapasindak,” said Taguiwalo.
Leaders took to the stage to share inspiring speeches.
KMU Chairperson Elmer Labog and former Bayan Muna solon Satur Ocampo paid tribute to reformist turned revolutionary Edgar Jopson.
“Tinatanggap namin ang responsibilidad na ipagpatuloy at ipagtagumpay ang laban ng mamamayang Pilipino,” exclaimed Alex Danday of Anakbayan.
