Gov’t Spies in State U: Threat to Academic Freedom
The University of the
Philippines (UP) as the premier academic institution in the country
remains one of the bulwarks of academic freedom. But its students are
being harassed and military and police forces are intensifying
surveillance operations inside the campus.
By REYNA MAE TABBADA
Bulatlat
|
Floyd Tiongson, an
editor of the Philippine Collegian, recounted several incidents when the
“staple military elements” inside the Diliman campus of the University of
the Philippines (UP) System made their clandestine presence felt. The
Collegian, also embattled in a fiscal battle with the school
administration, is the official student publication of UP Diliman.
In an interview with
Bulatlat, the cases Tiongson recounted go back to 2005. For
instance, there was a report when a civilian directly identified himself
as a member of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines (ISAFP). This was followed by information that unidentified
men with dubious credentials were trying to access student records at the
University Registrar.
|
The latest occurrence
of the military’s apparent infiltration in the UP Diliman campus happened
July this year. Because of budget constraints, the number of traditional
security enforcers in the campus called the blue guards was cut down. In
order to augment the lack in the security force, the Office of the Vice
Chancellor for Community Affairs (OVCCA) established the Special Security
Brigade (SSB).
“Sila yun mga
makikita mo na mukhang mga tanod sa Diliman (They look like village
watchmen and can be seen around the Diliman campus.),” describes Tiongson.
What raised the
suspicion of the faculty, students, and non-academic personnel was that 15
members of the Philippine Marines tried to apply for the SSB after the
OVCCA terminated the services of several inefficient members. When
confronted with the issue, the administration said that the 15 applicants
were not in active status.
But an officer of the
University Student Council (USC) was able to get hold of the papers of the
suspicious applicants. The documents showed that the applicants were
highly trained in combat.
Tiongson said that
the incident is a violation of an accord where military and police
operations inside any UP campus are prohibited. He also pointed out that
“these are really cases of intimidation”.
Target: Student
leaders
When asked who the
targets of these intimidations were, Tiongson cited the fact that these
instances happened to students who have known affiliations with militant
student organizations like the student council, student publication, and
mass organizations like Anakbayan (Sons and Daughters of the People) and
League of Filipino Students (LFS).
He said that the
military and the police has taken special interest in UP because of the
state university’s influence in public opinion.
“UP has a strong
opinion about this administration,” Tiongson said. “It can mobilize a big
force and because it belongs to the academic community, it influences
public opinion, especially among the middle sector. The campaign for the
ouster of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and against Presidential Proclamation
1017 placing the country under a state of national emergency, Executive
Order 464, and the Calibrated Preemptive Response policy, were so strong
that UP is being viewed as a balwarte (bulwark) of the
opposition. It shows how many warm student bodies can be mobilized by
student institutions.”
Such a statement has
been proven before, since student protest actions prevented the entry of
the controversial Marines, active or reserved, to the university. Though
the attempts to strengthen surveillance operations by the military and
police cannot be stopped, awareness among the students of threats to
academic freedom and other democratic rights that are being caused by such
kind of interventions in the university is slowly proving to be enough for
UP to remain a genuine democratic institution.
During martial law,
1972-1986, the Diliman campus was infiltrated by National Intelligence
Coordinating Agency (NICA) agents who were also believed to be maintaining
an intelligence outpost. Security was so stringent that UP security forces
were authorized to search and arrest students without any warrant.
Until now, members of
the ROTC, an adjunct of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, are under
orders to monitor students especially those identified with cause-oriented
organizations, as well as faculty members known for their radical views.
With other reports / Bulatlat
BACK TO
TOP ■
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION ■
COMMENT
© 2006 Bulatlat
■
Alipato Media Center
Permission is granted to reprint or redistribute this article, provided
its author/s and Bulatlat are properly credited and notified.