A protest against the anti-terrorism bill was held on the 122nd Philippine Independence Day inside the University of the Philippines Diliman. The bill has been in President Rodrigo Duterte’s desk for signing since June 9. He skipped his weekly speech this week – usually Thursday in the last few times he addressed the public. He opted to talk to the people on Monday, June 15, despite that day also being the last day of the current quarantine protocol and people await updates on what happens next and what are the government’s plans regarding the pandemic.
The theme of the protest is the mañanita, the excuse for the birthday party for National Capital Region Police Office Chief Major General Debold Sinas. The mañanita is now also a symbol for the government’s double standards, neglect and callousness during the pandemic – in the same boat where the railroading of the anti-terrorism bill belongs.
So to go with the mañanita theme should allow protesters to avert arrest – as did Sinas and officials who partied amid the lockdown. The protest was complete with party favors, food, games and videoke.
