Several progressive groups have lambasted the Anti-Terrorism Council’s designation of community doctor Maria Natividad Castro as a terrorist, saying ATC Resolution No. 35 has turned serving the people into a crime.
The UP Manila University Student Council slammed the Anti-Terrorism Council’s (ATC) designation of their alumna as a terrorist, saying the state’s haphazard labeling puts community healthcare professionals at risk.
“Hadlang ang patuloy na panrered tag na ito sa pagtanggap ng libreng serbisyong medikal at iba pang paraan ng community service mula sa mga doktor, nars, at mga healthcare workers. Nilalagay nito sa pangganib ang mga healthcare workers na gusto lamang magsilbi sa bayan at ang mga komunidad na kanilang pinupuntahan. Hindi terrorismo ang tulong medikal,” they said in a statement.
Dr. Benito Molino, part of the board of trustees of the Medical Action Group, also said that the terror-tagging endangers not only Castro, but all health care professionals.
“Sa panahong ang malawak na mahirap na mamamayan mula kabundukan at kanayunan hanggang kalunsuran ay uhaw sa serbisiyong pangkalusugan ng pamahalaan, ang pangalanan ang isang doktor na tumalikod sa karangyaan at piniling paglingkuran ang mga abang mamamayan na hindi napaglilingkuran ng pamahalaan na terorista ay hindi tama,” he said.
Serving the people is a terrorist act
A graduate of the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and the former secretary general of human rights group Karapatan, Castro’s aim has been serving underprivileged communities for more than two decades.
READ: https://tinyurl.com/DocNaty
She has done work in several Lumad communities providing medical assistance to local areas such as Agusan del Sur where her eventual arrest took place.
Due to Castro’s allegedly identified ties to terrorist organizations, the Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) justified charges against her in their written resolution dated December 7, 2022 that stated “violations of Sections 6, 10 and 12 of the ATA [Anti-Terrorism Act],” specifically citing apparent acts of terrorist recruitment and training in the different local communities Castro was working in.
In a statement from human rights group Karapatan, where Castro was previously Secretary general, they said that “this designation is the latest in the ATC’s exercise of broad arbitrary powers that is in clear violation of Doc Naty’s right to due process. There is no credible nor sufficient bases for this designation. It is meant to not only threaten and harass her – it is meant to place her life in danger.”
In light of what they see as “baseless” accusations, numerous progressive groups have come out with statements not only calling for her release, but also calling for the immediate junking of the Anti-Terror Law.
Weaponizing the law
The Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) has been a subject of long time scrutiny by political activists all over the country since the Duterte administration first railroaded it during the pandemic.
Heavily weaponized by Duterte, and now under Marcos, progressives say that the ATA has further advanced red-tagging on a larger scale, and has left progressive groups, indigenous communities, and the general minority even more vulnerable to state attacks.
READ: https://tinyurl.com/v9ws9999
Apart from Doc. Naty’s unjust arrest, the expansion of power granted by the ATA and other policies of the same dangerous nature has put other activists like Castro in jeopardy, such as the recent unjust arrest of Jen Awingan, mother of labor rights group Kilusang Mayo’s Kara Taggaoa, a student of the University of the Philippines Diliman department of Sociology who coincidentally was also facing unlawful arrest a few months prior.
Awingan is just one of the many Cordilleran activists facing false charges in light of the newly enacted policies.
READ: https://tinyurl.com/552y587w
Despite his old age, retired National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) peace consultant Ruben Saluta was also arrested alongside two companions on January 29 in General Santos City.
READ: https://tinyurl.com/ywndbavb
As progressive groups get ready to strengthen defenses against these attacks, they also vow to continue their calls in the suspension of these policies and the release of those unjustly arrested.
Gabriela Partylist representative Arlene Brosas in a statement condemning the attacks, saying “This is an outright attack against human rights defenders who are merely helping out communities,” further promising the investigation of the recent arrests and charges of those wrongfully accused with doctor Natividad Castro, and Jen Awingan.
“The brazen abuse of the law by this regime to silence dissent is not new. It is the logical conclusion of a concerted effort by elites to demonize any challenge of their greed and power. It will not end unless all those who value democratic rights stand against it together.” asserted Walden Bello, former member of the House of Representatives and part of the Partido Lakas ng Masa Partylist.
Featured image is from GMA News
