By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Military operations that target civilians in communities did not end with the Arroyo administration. it is still continuing as what is happening in Barangay Pura, Rodriguez, Rizal province just outside Metro Manila.
Category: Top Stories
Peasant Leader Killed Inside Nueva Ecija Army Camp
By RONALYN V. OLEA
A 78-year-old peasant leader was shot dead by two motorcycle-riding men inside his house in San Isidro, Laur town, Nueva Ecija, at around 4:45 p.m. Friday, July 9. He was the second victim of extrajudicial killing under the new administration of President Benigno S. Aquino III.
Teachers Urge Aquino to Resuscitate Education System
By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Because of what teachers call as the “the lost decade of Philippine education” during the Arroyo administration, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers is calling for urgent and bold measures.
Like Arroyo Like Aquino? Same Cabinet/Government – Same Anti-people Policies
By MARYA SALAMAT
Forming his team to set the direction of change or political payback? So far, except for Justice Sec. Leila de Lima, the Cabinet of Pres. Benigno Aquino III is a mixture of key figures in his campaign, representatives of big business, and old hands of the former Arroyo administration.
Araneta Family, Mascap Farmers Fight Over Land in Rodriguez, Rizal
By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Even as the 1,644-hectare land was already awarded to the farmers in 1972 through Presidential Decree 27 or the Marcos Land Reform Law, the Araneta family was able to get the Court of Appeals to rule in its favor in 2003. Now the case is before the Supreme Court.
Peasant Women, Coping on the Fringes
By LYN V. RAMO
With their small parcels of land no longer producing enough for their families, peasant women and men try to make do with odd jobs.
Joan Hinton: Internationalist, Scientist for the People, Socialist
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL
In 1948, a disillusioned American physicist gave up her promising career, left her country and lived with the people of China. She was Joan Hinton, an internationalist, revolutionary scientist and socialist who serves as an inspiration to many Filipino activists.
Groups Slam Possible CHR Appointment of ‘McCarthyist’ Etta Rosales, Who Echoed AFP’s Line on Killings
By RONALYN V. OLEA
Karapatan, Kilusang Mayo Uno and Anakbayan point out that Akbayan’s Etta Rosales had, in the past, mouthed the military line that the extrajudicial killings were part of “internal purges” in the CPP-NPA. “Appointing her to the commission is highly unreasonable, if not insane,” the KMU said.
Myrna Cruz-Abraham: Gentle Mom, Activist, Political Prisoner
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL
The abduction and imprisonment of Myrna Cruz-Abraham, an activist in Cagayan Valley, shattered her family but also made her children stronger. It is prisoners of conscience like her that present a challenge to President Aquino to be true to his promise of justice and respect for human rights.
Diwalwal Stirs Anew as Big Mining Firms Threaten to Displace Thousands
By DAISY C. GONZALES, MARILOU AGUIRRE-TUBURAN and JOSE HERNANI
After eight years of government control, the mineral reservation site in Diwalwal has been eyed by big interest groups, leaving Velasco and more than 40,000 villagers in a constant threat of displacement. Small miners resent government’s policy allowing big private mining firms to take over the site.
Aquino Urged to Free ‘Morong 43,’ Especially the Pregnant and Sick
By RONALYN V. OLEA
Doctors who have examined the Morong 43 in jail said the pregnant detainees would be giving birth soon and their detention raises the possibility of complications. The sick ones are also at risk of more danger, they said.