PUP 3 was released after days of detention. (Screengrab from The Catalyst)

By DOMINIC GUTOMAN
Bulatlat.com

MANILA — Three students from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) were released on September 23, Monday, following their detention at the Manila Police District (MPD) Station 14, after a series of protests.

Three student-artists, collectively known as the “PUP Three,” were illegally arrested without a warrant on September 19, after suspecting them of vandalism. Later that day, authorities threatened them with charges of vandalism (City Ordinance No. 8609), malicious mischief (Article 327 of the Revised Penal Code), and disobedience to a person in authority (Article 151 of the Revised Penal Code), which the legal team dubbed as “vague and unfounded.”

During the encounter of the students to the police on the day of arrest, officer brandished a firearm, according to one of the students. They attempt to deescalate the violence by asking the officer to lower the firearm, saying that they would not flee. In the same day, victims recalled that an intelligence officer conducted an interview, asked them to provide their fingerprints, and discreetly filmed them while in the police custody. The students were not informed about their rights in the course of these events.

“There is no solid basis for the charges filed by the police against the three artists of the people,” cultural group Panday Sining PUP said. “This incident is strong evidence of how narrow-minded and vicious the mindset of the Manila Police District is. It is a clear manifestation that they do not stand for the oppressed masses, but for the ruling class.”

Students also recalled that the police conducted a force search in their belongings at Barbosa Police Station. They also reported that verbal harassment transpired in the said station. They were transferred to the MPD right prior to the inquest.

Meanwhile, youth groups from PUP and national formations conducted a series of protests in front of the MPD right after the illegal arrest. The protests also coincided with the 52nd Martial Law commemoration.

“After the inquest, there is no clear evidence that can prove the claims of the police,” said Defend PUP.

“Despite the fabricated charges, it is clear to the youth that protesting through art is not only justifiable but necessary. Especially now, when we all know that the same Martial Law of the fascist dictatorship of Marcos Sr. has been inherited and is continued by his son, Marcos Jr., with his burdensome, incompetent, and fascist government. Resistance is not a crime!” they added.

Due to the insufficiency of evidence to back the charges, the legal team was able to assert the freedom of the three student-artists. The legal team also asserted that the police officers violated Article 125 of the Revised Penal Code, pertaining to the delay in the delivery of detained to the proper judicial authorities.

This is not the first time that artists are met with trumped-up charges. Just last year, progressives decried the apparent harassment suit filed against visual artist Max Santiago and three other John Does over the burning of the effigy of Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during the 2023 State of the Nation Address protest.

Later, in December 2023, Quezon City assistant prosecutor Nerissa Rhona V. Zamora-Amoroso dismissed the complaint due to insufficiency of evidence.

Read: Gov’t prosecutor dismisses environmental raps against cultural artist

Activists assert that protest art such as murals, graffiti, and installations is within the gambit of freedom of expression and guaranteed even by the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICPR), especially those that evoke social and political messages. (RTS)

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