Gabriela Partylist vehemently denounces the state abduction of four activists and demands the Marcos Jr. regime to resurface the four desaparecidos.
Yesterday, July 13, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) has also released a statement condemning the state abduction of the activists last May and July.
Two of the victims are Elizabeth ‘Loi’ Magbanua, Alipio ‘Ador’ Juat, who are KMU members and actively advocate for workers’ rights and welfares, are missing since May 3, 2022. The other two, Elgene Mungcal of Gabriela Women’s Partylist and Ma. Elena ‘Cha’ Cortez Pampoza of Anakpawis, who are farmers and land rights activist, are missing since July 3, 2022.
Magbanua and Juat were last seen at Brgy. Punturin, Valenzuela City after attending a meeting in the said area. Meanwhile, Mungcal and Pampoza were last seen at Winfare Supermarket, Moncada, Tarlac.
According to Pampoza’s children, their mother last seen their message on Viber on July 5. However, their mother has not responded to their messages.
A daughter of Juat, on the other hand, exposed that her father called her around the third week of May, informing her that he and Magbanua were abducted by the Philippine Navy, and the two were separated while Juat was extrajudicially being held prisoner in Camp Aguinaldo.
Accordingly, the groups and the families of the victims heavily suspect that it was the state that is behind the abduction of the four activists, considering also the state-endorsed red-tagging of Gabriela, KMU, Anakpawis, and other progressive individuals and formations.
Gabriela, KMU, and the families of the desaparecidos has already contacted the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to request immediate investigation and seach.
READ: http://bitly.ws/sNgt
Gabriela expressed its concerns on the continuous and aggravated cases of desaparecidos and other extrajucidial state measures.
The partylist reminded the thousands of victims of extrajudicial killings during former President Duterte’s term especially in his “was on drugs.”
Compounding into this is the return to Malacañang of the Marcoses, whose dead dictator patriarch victimized over 100,00 people in which around 800 were desaparecidos.
Gabriela also clarified that the activists are merely protesting for the rights and welfare of the sectoral groups, especially of those who are greatly affected by the current economic crisis.
It was earlier reported that the unemployment rate rose to 6% in May from 5.7% last April. Meanwhile, the inflation rate increased to 6.1% in June, affecting the prices of basic necessities like food, gas, and transportation fare.
READ: http://bitly.ws/sNhH
“The families together with GABRIELA and KMU challenged Ferdinand Marcos Jr to be different from his predecessor Duterte and even from his dictator father by commanding the military to surface the desaparecidos and to put an end to the extrajudicial arrests and detentions,” Gabriela contended.
Featured image courtesy of Joseph Cuevas
