Fight Back News Service is circulating the following March 7 statement from the militant labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (May First Workers Movement).

After Duterte pronounced in a gathering his desire to kill all communists, state forces launched coordinated attacks against unionists and activists in Southern Tagalog. In separate operations in the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas and Rizal. Eight were arrested and five were killed on March 7, Sunday.

In a raid in the office of labor institution Workers' Assistance Center, police shot dead Manny Asuncion, Cavite provincial coordinator of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Cavite.

In Laguna, two unionists and a human rights worker were arrested.

Steve Mendoza, executive vice president of the Organized Labor Association in Line Industries and Agriculture (OLALIA KMU) was arrested in a dawn raid of his home in Cabuyao. Police forcibly entered by destroying the gate of the house.

Elizabeth “Mags” Camoral of BAYAN Laguna, and former union president of F-Tech was also arrested in the Defend Yulo Farmers headquarters in Cabuyao.

Nimfa Lanzanas of human rights group Kapatid-Timog Katagalugan, and a paralegal aide of political prisoners was arrested while she was with her grandchild.

Killed in Rizal were Michael Dasigao and Makmak of Sikkad Montalban. Two peasant leaders in Montalban, Rizal were also arrested today.

The whole family of fisherfolk leaders Chai Lemita-Evangelista, Ariel Evangelista, and 10-year old son Raymart Evangelista were arrested in their home in Nasugbu, Batangas. Later today, the bodies of Chai and Ariel were found dead, while their son was able to escape.

The spate of killings, arrests and other attacks presents a human rights emergency that merits the attention of the entire Filipino people and the international community. We call for support for the victims of the attacks on trade union and human rights.

#DefendOurUnions #StopTheAttacks #StopTheKillings #JunkTerrorLaw

#Philippines #PeoplesStruggles #KilusangMayoUno #Asia

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR) demanding the release of jailed trade union leaders in the Philippines.

Greetings of solidarity to the Filipino people as they struggle courageously for the national liberation of their people from the bondage of U.S. imperialism

As always, the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR) stands in solidarity with the struggle of the Filipino people for national democracy and call for the immediate release of the HRDay7. Six trade unionists with the labor federation KMU (Kilusang Mayo Uno, or May First Movement) and a journalist were arrested by Philippine National Police on International Human Rights Day, December 10.

In 2017 and 2018, we had the honor of hosting the KMU in Chicago, and to stand with them as the labor movement here placed the KMU plaque on the monument to the Haymarket Martyrs. They KMU is named after the historic general strike which was centered here in Chicago in 1886 to demand the eight hour day.

National oppression here is a racist system in service of a ruling class whose wealth is built on slavery, genocide, and war. Our ruling class also exploits the people of the Philippines, whose country was militarily invaded over a century ago, occupied for half a century, and today their government is a puppet of the US government.

We call for the immediate release of the HRDay7 and a stop to the filing of manufactured criminal charges against activists.

Three years ago, President Duterte betrayed his commitments to the Filipino people. For the working class, he promised an end to contractualization, the system in which most workers are denied job security, benefits, adequate income, and workplace and environmental safety protections. In addition, his failure in handling COVID-19 has led to the highest unemployment rate in history.

As the Filipino people have fought back against Duterte’s betrayal, demanding that their needs be met, the regime has responded by passing an anti-terror bill. Now anyone criticizing his government is a “terrorist.”

Working people in all countries know the same truth: the rich have their lawyers, police, politicians, and judges. The only thing we have is organization, and the most important of organizations for the working class are our unions. Duterte knows that for Filipino workers, too. That’s why he attacks the union movement.

Here in Chicago, we have built a strategic alliance between the multinational working class and the national liberation movements. Our struggle for an end to police terror through community control of the police (CPAC) rests on the backbone of the united front of the organizations of the Black liberation movement, led by the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, and the unions that continue to support us, especially the Chicago Teachers Union and SEIU Local 73.

Ours is a struggle for the democratic rights denied to oppressed nationalities in the US, and we raise our voices in support of the Filipino people in their struggle as well.

Free the HRDay7!

Yours in united struggle,

Frank Chapman, Executive Director, NAARPR

#UnitedStates #Philippines #Asia #PeoplesStruggles #KilusangMayoUno #PoliticalRepression #NationalAllianceAgainstRacistAndPoliticalRepression

The militant labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) went to the Supreme Court grounds on Wednesday, September 2, to amplify the call for the release of minor, sick, elderly and other vulnerable detainees.

“We urge the Supreme Court to decisively act on the urgent petition of kin of sick, elderly and other vulnerable detainees. The petition was filed on April 8, and no action has been taken by the Supreme Court since. We ask the Supreme Court this on humanitarian grounds in this time of pandemic,” said Eleanor de Guzman, KMU secretary for human rights.

KMU cited the fragile state of prisons as basis for the release, as the categorized prisoners are vulnerable to COVID-19 infection.

“Even if there were already several reports of COVID-19 infection among inmates in various detention facilities nationwide, no concrete action has been taken by government to secure the health and safety of vulnerable prisoners,” De Guzman said.

The petition filed last April 8 seeks the temporary release of 22 vulnerable prisoners. The Supreme Court decision on it will have an effect not just on them but other sick and elderly prisoners as well.

KMU and Free Our Unionists campaign network called for the release of long-time unionists Ireneo Atadero, who is suffering from hypertension; Adelberto Silva who is a double-bypass patient; Rowena Rosales, who is suffering from hypertension and diverticulitis and Oliver Rosales, who suffered from a heart attack.

They also called for the release of unionists Maoj Maga, Renante Gamara, and Noli Rosales who were wrongfully detained on fabricated charges.

They also echoed the plea for the release of Reina Mae Nasino, one of the petitioners, who just gave birth to a baby on July 1 but cannot nurse the newborn because they were separated following the Court’s denial of remedies sought by Ina’s family.

UN High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet earlier issued a statement which called on “governments to act quickly on reducing the number of people in detention, by releasing the most vulnerable, the elderly and sickly, pregnant, low-level offenders, as well as those with disabilities and juvenile detainees.”

KMU called on freedom-loving people, human rights advocates and the international community to act together and demand the release of vulnerable prisoners in the Philippines and other countries.

#Philippines #Labor #Asia #PeoplesStruggles #KilusangMayoUno

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following June 4 statement from the militant trade union Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU).

Court decision on Maga's case, unjust, anti-union

We protest the guilty verdict handed down by the San Mateo Regional Trial Court against trade unionist and political prisoner Maoj Maga. He was convicted yesterday on the case of illegal possession of firearms and was sentenced to prison for a minimum of eight years and one day.

The court’s decision is biased against trade unionists and is leaning towards the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippines National Police (PNP). It serves their objective of preventing key leaders and organizers of the militant trade union Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and PISTON from organizing workers to assert their demands.

The charges laid against Maga were baseless. The evidence was planted. The real criminals here are the police who illegally arrested Maga and came out with false testimonies. They blatantly lied in their testimonies and the court based its decision only on these lies, and nothing more. Maga’s basic rights to liberty and due process were grossly violated.

The police lied, and by affirming their lies, the court also committed a serious crime and violated the law, apart from violating Maga's rights.

The decision to keep Maga detained comes timely when the issue of banning provincial buses, phasing out of jeepneys, and implementing route rationalization and fleet management are about to spark public outrage.

Months before his arrest in February 2018, Maga was one of the leading organizers of public utility drivers who conducted a series of transport strikes against the phasing out of jeepneys.

The Duterte government is afraid that by releasing Maga, drivers and commuters will have a young and vibrant organizer back to work.

We in the labor movement will not stop fighting for Maoj Maga's release. He should not be punished for being a trade union organizer.

The court should review its decision and let truth and justice prevail.

Free Maoj Maga! Free all political prisoners!

#Philippines #InJusticeSystem #Labor #Asia #PeoplesStruggles #PoliticalPrisoner #PoliticalPrisoners #KilusangMayoUno #ArmedForcesOfThePhilippines

Minneapolis, MN – More than 50 trade unionists gathered at the United Labor Centre here, April 25, to hear Ed Cubelo, the president of Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Workers Association and chairman of the Metro Manila chapter of the major trade union federation in the Philippines – Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) or 'May First Labor Movement.' Also speaking was Raymond “Mong” Palatino, the chairperson of the metro Manila chapter of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-BAYAN, a progressive alliance of people’s organizations.

KMU leader Ed Cubelo talked about the conditions faced by workers in the Philippines under the reactionary U.S.-backed regime of President Rodrigo Duterte, and the struggle for decent working conditions at U.S.-controlled multinational corporations. The KMU has organized a wave of powerful protests, strikes and workplace occupations to improve the lot of Filipino workers.

About $4000 was pledged to support a KMU workers’ school at the speaking event.

On April 26, a meeting was held which included the Philippine guests and some of Minnesota’s top labor leaders.

#MinneapolisMN #Labor #OppressedNationalities #Philippines #Asia #PeoplesStruggles #WorkersAndGlobalization #BAYAN #KilusangMayoUno #ToyotaMotorPhilippinesCorporationWorkersAssociation

We in the Committee to Stop FBI Repression NYC stand in solidarity with the NutriAsia workers, who are currently under attack by the Philippine National Police.

NutriAsia workers are facing unsafe conditions with temperatures reaching more than 40 degrees celsius (100 F) inside the bottling and packing stations, while the products are hotter than 95 degrees celsius (200 F); the safety gear and equipment are substandard and inadequate. Work-related accidents such as second-degree burns and bone fractures can lead victims to be fired, thus workers hide their injuries. 100 workers are regularly-employed but more than 1400 are contractual; the labor union is unrecognized and prohibited.

Organizers encourage people to boycott NutriAsia condiments, which are popular at Filipino dinner tables and households; these include UFC, Silver Swan, Datu Puti, Papa, Golden Fiesta, Jufran, Locally, and Mang Tomas brands, to be found in Asian supermarkets or stores here in New York. Joselito D. Campos Jr. is the owner of NutriAsia, the CEO of Del Monte Pacific, the son of UniLab founder Beatrice Campos, and his sister, Jocelyn, currently chairs UniLab; their family’s net worth is $650 million as of 2017.

NutriAsia employees work 12-16 hrs a day for just $7 (P380 per day); while the company earns $500,000 daily (P37 million) per product line, it pays just 5 minutes out of 12 hrs of work and only P3000 (< $60) as a Christmas bonus.

Workers have faced repression and violence in retaliation for exercising their right to picket against their own exploitation; at least nineteen protesters have been arrested in Marilao, Bulacan one week ago July 30th, with others going missing or unaccounted for, which include workers, youth leaders, journalists, and supporters. About 50 NutriAsia security guards and 20 PNP members violently attacked and injured hundreds in Marilao and Meycauayan.

As an organization that stands against political repression, we understand the importance of those who are oppressed to speak out. Our organization was started after the FBI raided and subpoenaed 23 anti-war and labor activists, and we are still defending current political organizers who are being repressed. Wherever there is push back against capitalism and US imperialism, there is repression of those who speak out, especially considering how much journalists are targeted.

It is no surprise that these actions have taken place under the Duterte government, in cooperation with the Trump administration. Duterte’s regime has been targeting, arresting, and murdering labor and human rights activists in the Philippines. All of this is funded by the US, because it is crucial for the imperialists to oppress workers both here and abroad.

The Committee to Stop FBI Repression NYC lends its support to the NutriAsia workers; we will continue to stand with workers and activists in the Philippines until they achieve liberation.

#NewYorkNY #NewYorkCity #AntiwarMovement #Labor #Philippines #Asia #WorkersAndGlobalization #strike #KilusangMayoUno #Nutriasia #CommitteeToStopFBIRepressionNYC

#UnitedStates #Philippines #KMU #FreedomRoadSocialistOrganization #frso #KilusangMayoUno #Socialism #ElmerBongLabog

The 131 workers are set to be fired this month. Many of them are long-time employees of Middleby Philippines, under the international, U.S.-based Middleby Corporation, which supplies commercial cooking equipment for fast-food chains and other restaurants. Their baseless termination, made possible by their unfair status as contractuals, is in line with the exploitative nature of contractualization schemes.

Locals report that firemen and policemen have threatened to use tear gas to disperse the strikers. The strikers are also being denied access to food and water brought to them by supporters outside the Special Economic Zone where the Middleby plant is located. Family members of workers on strike have been summoned by the corporation, and used to convince the workers to leave the sit-down strike.

The Middleby workers, under the May First Movement, or Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) affiliated Samahan ng mga Manggagawang Kontraktwal sa Middleby, slammed both the corporation and the government for their failure to implement an April 24 ruling by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) which ordered the regularization of all 131 workers.

The plight of the Middleby workers proves that Duterte has once again failed in his promise to end contractualization. The united labor sector asked the president to sign an executive order that would set regular hiring as the norm, and ensure concrete mechanisms for punishing companies such as Middleby for non-compliance with DOLE regularization orders. Instead, Duterte gave us EO 51, which is completely useless in protecting the labor rights of Middleby workers and all other contractual workers in the country.

A statement from the KMU calls on all workers and members of other sectors to lend their support to the strikers of Middleby, stating, “The ongoing, massive retrenchments of contractual workers show that EO 51 is fake and deceptive, and that Duterte himself has no real plan or commitment to junk contractualization. We stand in solidarity with all workers and other labor organizations as we resist and oppose the anti-worker policies of the Duterte regime, and continue the nationwide struggle to end all forms of contractualization for good.”

#Philippines #KilusangMayoUno #Asia

Chicago, IL – Elmer “Bong” Labog is chairperson of the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), or May First Movement, one of the largest industrial labor federations in the Philippines. Ka Bong, as he is known by his kasamas, or comrades in Filipino, came to Chicago May 14 and 15 to pay tribute to the Haymarket martyrs. He was hosted by the Illinois Labor History Society, who invited the KMU to be the international union this year to place a plaque at the memorial to the Haymarket martyrs in Chicago.

Ka Bong was able to meet with officers and activists in the Chicago Teachers Union, Service Employees International Union Local 73, Jobs With Justice, Workers United, the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, the Chicago Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff, and others. He was also able to visit the most important labor monument in the world in Forest Home Cemetery, where the Haymarket martyrs are buried.

Finally, he spoke at a rally of 1000 people on the 70th anniversary of the Nakba, or Catastrophe, when Zionist armies carried out the ethnic cleansing of 750,000 Palestinians, killing 13,000, to found the state of Israel. The protest was held to condemn the Israeli massacre of 113 unarmed protesters in Gaza, and the wounding of thousands more demanding the Right of Return for all Palestinian refugees and their descendants to the original homes and lands they were exiled from during the Nakba.

#ChicagoIL #Labor #Philippines #KMU #KilusangMayoUno #Asia

On her 63rd birthday: Workers wish prison term for Arroyo

By Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU)

A prison term starting June 30 is the wish of workers for Gloria Arroyo’s 63rd birthday today, labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno said.

KMU also wishes that the Judicial and Bar Council, which is holding its meeting today, will not give a pleasant gift to Mrs. Arroyo, in the form of expediting her appointment of the next chief justice.

“Happy Ba-bay day, Madame President. We hope that this will be your last birthday in the Palace, for our birthday wish for you is no less than a prison term. You deserve no less than the realization of this wish because you have committed countless crimes against the Filipino workers and people,” said Elmer “Bong” Labog, KMU chairperson.

“Since 2001, and especially after 2004, we activists have been celebrating, with tears in our eyes, the birthdays of our comrades who were killed or disappeared by this regime. Today, as she celebrates her birthday, we remind Mrs. Arroyo of the sad birthdays caused by the deaths and disappearances that she has ordered,” Labog added.

KMU, together with Anakpawis Partylist, called on the public to observe what it called “Birthday ni Gloria, Ba-bye day ng masa,” and hold a noise barrage from 4:00 to 5:00 in the afternoon. About 200 KMU and Anakpawis members gathered in Trabajo Market for the noise barrage. They then marched to Mendiola to present a “gift” to Mrs. Arroyo.

“Our gift is a cage. This is a symbol of the workers’ and people’s birthday wish to put Mrs. Arroyo behind bars for her crimes – from corruption to human rights abuses, and from electoral fraud to murderous criminal neglect. We really look forward to June 30, the day that she loses her immunity from suits and punishment,” Labog said.

“If Arroyo refuses to grant the people’s wish for prison term and pursues her devious schemes, then she must brace for a citizen’s arrest. She can run but she cannot hide from the wrath of Filipinos,” he added.

JBC Meeting

The labor leader also said the public wishes that the Judicial and Bar Council will not grant Mrs. Arroyo’s request for a pleasant birthday present today, as the body meets to screen nominees for the next chief justice of the Supreme Court.

“We hope that the JBC understands that what is legal is not necessarily good for the country. We hope it refuses to grant Mrs. Arroyo’s birthday wish to receive a pleasant gift from the body, in the form of a list of CJ nominees that she can easily appoint,” said Labog.

The JBC is set to meet on the day of Mrs. Arroyo’s birthday, to screen nominees for chief justice of the Supreme Court. The administration has been pushing for Mrs. Arroyo to appoint the next CJ, a move seen by workers and people as paving the way for Mrs. Arroyo’s continued hold on power and for her immunity from prosecution.

#Philippines #Labor #GloriaArroyo #KilusangMayoUno #Asia