The humanitarian crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic is the most urgent issue that the Duterte government must answer not the destructive militarist war game.
The action of Duterte certifying the urgency of the enacted Anti-Terrorism Bill (House Bill 6875) is endorsing a highly abusive law at the pretext of national security and for people’s welfare. This is a simple legalization of the government’s violent and bloody attacks on peoples’ organizations and its leaders, activists, critics, and other Filipino citizens.
This bill, authorizes Duterte and the Police/Military forces to:
– curtail freedom of every Filipino.
– make warrantless arrests, and longer period,
– conduct surveillance and spying on identified organizations, personalities and suspected dissenters (communications and social media).
– give unconditional rights to terrorize organizations and communities.
– abuse basic democratic and human rights of Filipinos.
All at the pretext of anti-terrorism? Shame!
For this is purely an escapism of the responsibility of the Duterte government it owes to the Filipino people during this pandemic. We are all shortchanged by this government, not addressing integrally the pandemic (health issues, like the call for mass testing; the displacement of livelihood, including employees and workers; Philhealth assistance and OFWs concerns; Education vacuum, the absence of a just recovery program and all other pressing concerns). Our government is incapacitated!
Our government is the one terrorizing the Filipino people!
While every Filipino family is looking for means to survive from the health and economic impacts of the COVID crisis; our elected lawmakers in Congress, the state forces (AFP/PNP) plus Rodrigo Duterte were able to immediately pass an anti-Filipino law—not even assuring us Filipinos of our recovery from the pandemic.
As we condemn this act of Duterte and of Congress, with the devouring mouths of the state forces ready to execute the law; we would like to re-iterate our calls for justice of the deaths of 783 Filipinos at the hands of the state forces, and the muted attitude of law enforcement agencies of not investigating the killings. Duterte is the real terrorist!
Resist All Anti-People Laws! Junk Anti-Terror Bill! End Repression! Oust Duterte! SIGN THE PETITION!
MIGRANTE EUROPE
