Residents interviewed by the NFSM said they met Errol Wendell, Maureen Santuyo, Alyssa Alano, Lyle Prijoles, Kai Sorem and RJ Ledesma months prior to the April 19 incident. They were not armed, contrary to military’s claims that they were members of the New People’s Army (NPA). 

During a press conference in Bacolod City on May 15, former Anakpawis Rep. Ariel Casilao, now chairperson of Unyon ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA), said that Errol who had been working as a staff of the organization was deployed together with Santuyo to conduct a research in Toboso since February last year.

Casilao said members of the National Federation of Sugarcane Workers (NFSW) in Negros reported 38 cases of land disputes. To help the farmers and farm workers, Casilao said UMA deployed two full-time staff to help organize and build a land reform case for the Department of Agrarian Reform. 

“For the months that they were in Barangay Salamanca, Errol reported that 18-hectares of land being cultivated by 16 peasant worker families, or 32 individuals, should have long been awarded to the farm workers. Based on Errol’s research, the person controlling the land only holds a tax declaration, not title,” Casilao said.

The said 18-hectare land is Hacienda Bedonia owned by the Baynosa family. The land is being leased to a “June Son” who operates a sugar plantation on the hacienda. According to UMA, the farm workers working in the sugar plantation were only paid P150 (less than $3) a day without social security benefits and others. 

Around November 2025, the Hacienda Baynosa Farmers and Farmworkers Association (HBFFA) was established. In December 2025, after the harvest season, the sugarcane workers informed the leaseholder of the hacienda that they would no longer continue planting sugarcane.

By February 2026, the farm workers began the bungkalan or collectively cultivated at least four hectares of land where they planted mung beans, cassava and sweet potato. 

In March 2026, UMA said the landowner became alarmed after the leaseholder reported the situation, though initially no action was taken against the farm workers. The land administrator also filed a complaint against the 16 families before the barangay, but it was dismissed because the barangay found no basis for the complaint because the administrator could not present a land title.

“Until about the second week of April, members of the Baynosa family reported the land occupation to the mayor of Toboso saying that there are members of the New People’s Army allegedly taking over the land,” Casilao said in a separate interview. 

On April 18, members of the 79th Infantry Battalion began intimidating and threatening the residents. The next day, soldiers killed 19 individuals.

Meanwhile, Ledesma was looking into a reported renewable energy project in sitio Moscubado, barangay Poblacion, also in Toboso. The land is owned by the provincial government. Based on the reports gathered by UMA, the farmers have been anxious that they might be displaced by the project. 

The local government of Toboso is eyeing Negros Occidental to be a top renewable energy town. 

“Our organizers and researchers were there because of this issue. RJ’s role, as well as the presence of Lai and Kai, was no different from RJ and Lyle’s visit to Candoni in October 2025. They never questioned the presence of a journalist and international solidarity companions who wanted to understand the situation of the people of Negros,” said Casilao. 

Casilao is referring to the palm oil plantation that will displace 300 households of small farmers and Indigenous families in the uplands of Candoni, Negros Occidental. Over 3,000 hectares of land have been cleared by palm oil giant Hacienda Asia Plantations, Inc., which is linked to the Consunji family who also owns DMCI Holdings.  

Prijoles and Ledesma also participated in the international solidarity mission which looked into destructive projects in different regions in the Philippines, Negros included, in October last year. 

Casilao stressed that the presence of the NPA guerrillas is immaterial in the Toboso 19 massacre, saying that there are existing laws that the Philippine government should adhere to in the midst of war. 

“The military knows there is NPA in this area and that is the reality, not only here in Toboso but in the whole country,” Casilao said, adding that NPA presence should not be a justification to tag researchers in the same area as such.

Casilao said that Roel Sabillo, another civilian among the 19 dead, served as the local guide for Ledesma and the others. 

“From the accounts that we gathered, the NPAs are also helping the farmers, they are just armed. But Errol and the others were not,” he added, reiterating that they are civilians including the two minors who were also killed.

The Communist Party of the Philippines also named 10 NPA fighters who were killed in the April 19 military operation. 

Casilao added that the Armed Forces of the Philippines have not yet explained the drone footage of NPA leader Roger Fabillar which he said, can be the sole witness to what really transpired last April 19, when he was killed. 

In the Philippines, there is also an existing law that penalizes crimes against humanity under Republic Act 9851 or the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity. Lawyer Kristina Conti of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers cited provisions of the law that may have been violated in the case of the Toboso 19 massacre. 

Conti said Section 4 of the law states violations committed in the context of an international or internationalized war. These include willful killing, willfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, willfully depriving a prisoner of war or other protected person of the rights and fair trial, among others.

Conti added that the law is clear that civilians should be distinguished from combatants. “There must be a clear distinction as to who the legitimate targets are. The difference between civilians and combatants must always be underscored. A violation of this principle constitutes a war crime,” Conti said. 

Conti also said Section C, Number 5 penalizes incidental loss of civilian life or injury to civilians. She said that based on some of forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun’s findings, some of the deceased appear to have died not only from gunshot wounds, but from bleeding to death or asphyxiation. 

Section 6C, Number 18 also declares that the personal dignity of individuals protected under the rules of war must be maintained.

Negros island, ‘massacre capital’

Casilao noted that the circumstances that led to the killing of the19 people in Toboso was the same circumstances when nine people were killed in Hacienda Nene in Purok Pine Tree Barangay Bulanon, Sagay City also in Negros Occidental in 2018. The farmers were also staging a collective cultivation of idle farm lands in the community. 

“Sad to say but the information that we gathered in the past years show that Negros has become the massacre capital of the Philippines,” Casilao said citing Sagay massacre in 2018 and Fausto massacre in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental where two children was also killed. 

In 2019, 14 peassants were killed in a police and military operations in three different areas in Negros Oriental on a single day. 

The massacre in the island would be traced back to the years of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos where 20 farmers were killed in Escalante massacre, also in Negros. 

Casilao said they demand accountability on the deaths of the Toboso 19. “Peace talks should also resume to address the roots of armed conflict,” he said. (RTS, RVO)

Read part 1: Bullets rained down in Toboso, residents tell fact-finding team

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A national fact-finding mission organized by human rights groups revealed that the Armed Forces of the Philippines used excessive military force on April 19. Residents also confirmed that at least six of the 19 killed were civilians.

Part 2: What were civilians doing in Toboso, Negros Occidental

TOBOSO, Negros Occidental – ‘Bullets were raining’ was how local residents of sitio Plaringding described the government troops’ operation on April 19 that left 19 dead.

Sitio Plaringding was the location where 19 individuals reportedly died. Some were found submerged in the water and others were in a dry area. Among those killed were peasant advocates Errol Wendel and Maureen Santuyo, University of the Philippines student leader Alyssa Alano, community journalist RJ Ledesma and Filipino-Americans Lyle Prijoles and Kai Sorem, and 13 others, including two minors. 

The residents told the national fact-finding and solidarity mission (NFSM) on May 14 that they heard the first volley of fire at around 9 a.m. on April 19. The soldiers reportedly were firing gunshots indiscriminately in the direction of the fishpond. 

According to the NFSM initial report, a resident together with a 14-year old boy and his mother went to the fishpond to harvest some shellfish. But when they were seen by the soldiers along the way, they were accosted and were illegally detained in the uphill part of the sitio overseeing the vast fishpond down below. They were reportedly interrogated by the soldiers about the alleged presence of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the area. 

While being detained, the three residents observed another group of soldiers positioned near the cemetery area also in the uphill part of Sitio Plaringding. 

The NFSM gathered that the bodies were left in the area until April 21. 

Karapatan Deputy Secretary General Ma. Sol Taule said that the residents were evacuated from the area from April 19 to April 22.  

“For two days it is only the military that was in the area that’s why we are raising doubts on how they handled the crime scene. There are possibilities that this was staged,” she said during a press conference, May 15 in Bacolod City.

In another sitio three kilometers away from Plaringding is sitio Sinugmawan, where local residents reported hearing gunshot at past 3 a.m. on the same day.

“It was around 3:58 until 6 in the morning and then silence,” said a female resident who sat for an interview with members of the NFSM. She said there were intermittent gunfire until 7 a.m. 

“We were filled with fear and very scared that the military might come back,” the resident said in Hiligaynon, adding that the gunshots were really loud. “We would hear it echoing and we would hear it hit trees and even our homes,” she said. 

An elderly woman in her 70s also said that her grandchildren were too scared and wanted to run away. “But I told them that we should just stay inside the house and duck near the floor, the cement floor, for safety. Because once we go out and run, we might get killed. We might get shot by the military,” she told the NFSM. 

How the 19 all ended up in sitio Plaringding is a big question. 

Residents of sitio Plaringding told the NFSM that Errol, Santuyo, Alano, Prijoles, Sorem and Ledesma were not armed, contrary to the claims of the military that they were members of the New People’s Army (NPA). 

Earlier, forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun, in a press conference following the autopsy of five victims, noted that the bodies recovered in sitio Plaringding were not properly handled. One of the bodies was wrongfully identified, the clothes of the five were also missing.

Lawyer Kristina Conti of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) also raised the question if sitio Plaringding was really the primary crime scene. 

“Residents said that the fishpond is an open area, if someone got hit once they may eventually die because they may fall into the fishpond. But why do some of the dead have multiple gunshot wounds?” Conti said during the May 15 press conference in Bacolod. 

“So this raises the question: Was this really the primary crime scene? Or were there other locations where these individuals were killed? The victims were just too many to conclude that they were killed all at once (in the area). Were they there for over 11 hours?” Conti said, adding there is so much more to uncover in this case. 

Read: Forensic expert raises questions on Toboso killings

A day before the incident, residents of sitio Sinugmawan told the NFSM that soldiers from the 79th and 303rd Infantry Battalion conducted house-to-house visits asking about the whereabouts of the members of the NPA.   

Taule said that residents also reported seeing drones hovering the community a few days prior to the April 19 incident. 

Lives disrupted 

After April 19, a 58-year-old woman, also a resident of sitio Sinugmawan, said that soldiers went to their residence asking them about “terrorists.” 

“They went into our houses looking for more terrorists. They asked all of us inside the house to go out. They took my husband and poked a gun in his back and went inside the house as they commanded him to let those inside the house to go out. I told the soldiers that we do not take anyone (inside the house),” the woman said. 

Due to fear, the residents have not been able to go back to their normal lives as they would still see soldiers roving in their area. 

Marina (not her real name) said that her community was peaceful until April 19 happened. “We were really afraid (when we heard the shots),” Marina told Bulatlat in an interview.

Marina is in her early 20s living with her parents in sitio Sinugmawan, barangay Salamanca. She said her mother almost had a heart attack when they heard the shots nearby. At 3:00 a.m. on April 19 when they heard the shots, she said they all gathered together in one house to be safe.

She said they were not able to see who was killed after the gunfire because they did not go out. They were also not able to evacuate. The incident traumatized and saddened them, Marina said. Their livelihood was interrupted as soldiers have been frequenting the area where her father works. She recalled that in some areas, grocery packs were distributed right after the military operation. Her family did not receive one.“It seems that they just selected those who were to be given,” she said.

“There has been a drone every day since April 19. Our dogs are barking because of that,” Marina said, adding that their dogs are usually not like that.

Soldiers were also roving on foot even at night, according to one resident of Sitio Sinugmawan. 

Meanwhile, Marina’s father was not able to get back to work on the fields because of the heavy presence of the military.

“It has been weeks, he cannot go back to the fields to gather bamboo,” she said in Filipino. Gathering bamboo was their main source of livelihood. Her older sibling who is in Cebu is the one who helps them to get by, sending groceries.  

“We really do not have anything to eat sometimes. It was really difficult,” she said.

The mothers from sitio Sinugmawan want to live in peace without the military. 

“Our kids are traumatized. They’re scared to even take a bath, to even visit the comfort room because of fear,” one mother said. She added that there are nights when men would peek through their houses at night and would run away when they put flashlights on to see them. 

They also hoped that they could resume their livelihood without fear. “We also hope that they stop visiting our houses, stop sleeping at our homes because our children would get scared,” she added.

“We hope that militarization will stop because without them, there would be not any issue in our area,” they said. (With translation from Hiligaynon to English by Cris Bayaga) (RTS, RVO)

Author’s note: Real names of the residents interviewed in this article were withheld due to serious threat to safety and security.

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“Resignation in the middle of this COA audit can be construed as an admission of guilt, or an abandonment of duty.”

CAGAYAN DE ORO — A group pushing for Moro people’s rights criticized the order directing Mohagher Iqbal to resign as minister of Basic, Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE) in the Bangsamoro region following a questionable procurement processes.

Iqbal led the peace negotiations for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that resulted in the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), the final peace pact signed between the Philippine government and the MILF in 2014 which ended years of armed struggle.

For the Moro-Christian Peoples’ Alliance (MCPA), the resignation order issued by Bangsamoro Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua—appointed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.—is not just a matter of anti-corruption and reorganization. The group viewed such action as the national government’s alleged “divide-and-rule” tactic to weaken Moro unity.

“[T]hey undermine the Bangsamoro people’s right to determine their own political direction free from Manila’s intervention and manipulation,” said Amirah Ali Lidasan, MCPA secretary-general.

Last year, Iqbal questioned the leadership change in the 80-member Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), the interim government of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), after only 35 out of the 41 MILF-endorsed nominees were appointed by Marcos Jr.

This is contrary to the Bangsamoro Organic Law which created the BARMM. Article 2, Section 16 of the law states that the MILF shall lead the BTA.

Read: Bangsamoro Organic Law: MILF questions gov’t compliance

Macacua was part of the 41 nominees endorsed by the MILF but as a parliament member, not as interim chief minister.

Resignation declined

In his letter dated May 11 posted by the Manila Standard, Macacua directed Iqbal, who also serves as chairperson for the MILF Peace Implementing Panel, to resign as education minister by May 18, following the questionable procurement transactions amounting to P2.2 billion as audited by the Commission on Audit (COA). 

Failure to do it, the interim chief minister said, would result in a deemed resignation.

The COA Special Audit Team flagged the MBHTE’s process and full payment of 73 joint ventures covering the procurement of goods amounting to P2.2 billion despite the absence of several required procurement documents.

The ministry also allegedly failed to impose liquidated damages amounting to P16 million against a supplier as a result of the 52-day delay of goods for the procurement of small armchairs for primary school learners. State auditors also flagged the 53 awarded contracts amounting to P1.9 billion despite defects in the procurement process. 

In his reply, Iqbal said that compelling a resignation amid these allegations would not give him an opportunity to respond. “Resignation in the middle of this COA audit can be construed as an admission of guilt, or an abandonment of duty.”

MILF Chairman and former chief minister Ah Haj Murad Ebrahim, on the other hand, said in his May 17 letter addressed to Macacua that mandatory consultation with the MILF, as the leader of the BTA, must be held prior to issuing such a decision, advising the incumbent chief minister to put the order on hold.

Defend peace process

In March, the MILF expressed concern after the resignation of Cesar Yano as chair of the Philippine government’s Peace Implementing Panel, stressing that it could not proceed with engagements related to the peace process that require formal commitments and authoritative decisions.

“The MILF Peace Implementing Panel cannot negotiate and engage with a headless counterpart,” the group said.

In a report by MindaNews, Yano reportedly resigned because he felt he was not empowered to exercise his mandate as chair of the peace panel under the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity of the Philippines (OPAPRU).

The MCPA called on the BTA, the MILF, and the political parties running in the first parliamentary election to unite and defend the gains of the Bangsamoro peace process, urging them to reject any political maneuvering by the national government.

Student leaders of the Mindanao State University (MSU) in Marawi City called for protection of the CAB that has been achieved through years of peace negotiations, as many MSU students have witnessed how an armed conflict disrupts education, affects people’s livelihood, and displaces communities.

“The call of thousands of Bangsamoro people […] reflects a collective demand to protect the gains of the peace process and ensure that the aspirations embodied in the CAB are fully realized,” the MSU Supreme Student Government and Office of the Student Regent said in a joint statement. (DAA)

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On May 12, 2026, Rev. Sadie Stone was prevented from entering the Philippines after arriving at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport for a humanitarian and fact-finding mission on the recent killings in Negros Occidental.

Stone, a United Methodist pastor, law student at the University of San Francisco School of Law, and member of the Global Council of the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP), was reportedly questioned by immigration authorities about her involvement with ICHRP and the campaign for justice for Brandon Lee, a Chinese-American activist who survived an assassination attempt in the Philippines in 2019.

The denial of entry came as Stone was set to join an international fact-finding mission investigating what human rights groups described as a massacre in Toboso, Negros Occidental, where 19 individuals were killed, including peasant advocates, a student leader, a journalist, and two Filipino-Americans.

“What really is there to fear about Rev. Sadie Stone?” asked Peter Murphy in a statement. “This appears to be another attempt of the Marcos Jr. regime to hide its war crimes from international eyes.”

Among those killed in the incident was Lyle Prijoles, a longtime community organizer from the San Francisco Bay Area and leader of ICHRP’s US chapter.

Initial findings from the mission that Stone was barred from joining showed that at least six of the victims, including Prijoles, were unarmed civilians. Investigators also documented alleged harassment and intimidation by state forces in surrounding communities before the killings.

According to the mission, military operations in the area included drone surveillance, house-to-house visits, and the alleged illegal detention of a 14-year-old boy and his mother during operations supposedly targeting the New People’s Army.

Murphy said the incident reflects the continuing culture of impunity under the administration of Ferdinand Marcos Jr., despite its public falling out with former president Rodrigo Duterte.

“Marcos Jr. and the Dutertes are in a deadly conflict, but they are still united in deadly repression of the people who are hungry for land to till,” Murphy said.

Rights advocates also pointed to what they described as an intensifying pattern of blacklisting foreign human rights defenders under the Marcos Jr. administration. Since 2022, several US-based activists, including Copeland Downs, Gordon Mutch, and Julia Jamora, have likewise reportedly been denied entry into the country.

The growing restrictions come amid expanding military ties between the Philippines and the United States, including increased military aid, troop presence, and joint exercises.

For rights groups, the contrast is telling.

“Unfortunately, Marcos Jr. seems much more keen to welcome foreign military troops into the country than human rights advocates,” Murphy said.

Stone has joined solidarity and church missions to the Philippines since 2016 through the California-Nevada Conference Task Force of the United Methodist Church. She has also actively campaigned for justice for Brandon Lee and supported the proposed Philippine Human Rights Act, a measure seeking to suspend US military aid to the Philippines until human rights standards are upheld. (RTS, RVO)

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The Philippine chapter of the International League of Peoples’ Struggles (ILPS) issued the call after US Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg disclosed in an interview that one of the phases of the initiative includes the US State Department’s move of “taking into custody” (land and property) the proposed 1,600-hectare industrial hub in Luzon to be established under the said partnership.

However, this request from the US was denied as confirmed by Joshua Bingcang, president and chief executive of the state-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), according to several media reports, adding that the initiative remains a “regular business development contract.”

Arnold Padilla, ILPS Philippines spokesperson, said that regardless of the hub’s status, the fact remains that a huge portion of the nation’s land will be used for the production of AI supply chains, which they viewed as an undertaking meant to serve the US industrial and military needs.

“This alone should already be a serious cause for concern and a compelling reason for the Filipino people to reject the project,” Padilla said in a statement sent to Bulatlat.

On April 16, the Philippine government signed the declaration, making the country the 13th Pax Silica signatory. The 1,600-hectare industrial hub under the partnership has been branded as an economic security zone.

Helberg visited the Philippines and led the unveiling on Monday, May 18, of the hub’s proposed site to be located in New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac.

Helberg revealed that there are two phases of the Pax Silica initiative in the country. Aside from supposedly taking the hub into custody, the second one pertains to long-term development, saying they have a two-year window to negotiate the details with their Filipino counterpart. These include legal safeguards for investors and taxation, to name a few.

The US undersecretary also said that the AI supply chains are not limited to chips but also include other inputs such as precision reducers, servo motors, earth magnets, and actuators, among others. 

Progressive groups and lawmakers opposed the US-led initiative. For them, the national government’s involvement makes the country become part of “war production” given the essential function of semiconductors—the Philippines’ reported top export—and advanced electronics in manufacturing military machinery.

Read: ‘Pax Silica’ initiative seen as war production, environment destruction

Padilla said all US’ recent involvement demonstrates how the US expanded and deepened its “neocolonial domination” in the country under the Marcos Jr. presidency. “We demand that the Philippine Congress investigate the Marcos Jr. regime’s agreement with the US for subverting the national interests and possible violations of the Constitution,” he added.

Read: Philippines as a US military base?

He also called on the Filipino people to oppose the project, as it also undermines the nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. (RVO)

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The women’s rights research and training institution condemned what it described as the continuing rise of state-perpetrated violence against women (VAW), calling on authorities to hold abusive police and military personnel accountable and end institutional practices that protect perpetrators.

CWR documented at least 40 cases of state-perpetrated VAW from 2022 to 2025 involving physical assault, rape, sexual harassment, molestation, domestic abuse, and the killing of women and children.

The group said that reports involving abusive police and military personnel surfaced almost monthly in 2025 alone, which women’s groups described as evidence of an entrenched culture of violence and impunity.

Violence behind the uniform

Public outrage intensified following the recent case of Aira Seda Dela Cruz after CCTV footage allegedly showed her husband, Police Officer Alimeri Dela Cruz, physically assaulting her inside their home in Malolos, Bulacan.

The video, which Aira herself publicly shared, allegedly showed the police officer repeatedly striking her until she lost consciousness.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) later relieved the officer from duty pending investigation.

“For every case that reaches the public, countless others remain hidden behind fear, intimidation, and institutional silence,” said CWR Executive Director Cham Perez.

“Cases like Aira’s are not isolated incidents,” Perez said. “They expose a systemic problem in institutions that continue to tolerate abuse within their ranks while failing to ensure justice for women survivors.”

CWR stressed that violence committed by state forces extends beyond domestic abuse cases.

The group said that state-perpetrated violence also includes custodial rape, sexual violence during military operations, harassment by state officials, abuse within police and military institutions, and violence against women and children in militarized communities.

Hidden numbers

CWR’s monitoring of official government data recorded at least 13,211 cases of violence against women in 2025, equivalent to around 36 women experiencing violence every day.

However, the group warned that the actual number of survivors may be higher.

According to estimates from the PNP Women and Children Protection Center, only one in 10 incidents of violence against women gets reported, which suggests that actual cases could exceed 130,000 annually.

CWR also raised alarm over what it described as the continuing failure of institutions to hold abusive personnel accountable.

“The uniform must never become a shield for abuse,” Perez said. “Women and children deserve protection, not violence from those mandated to uphold public safety and human rights.”

The group said that weak accountability mechanisms and institutional protectionism continue to reinforce impunity within state security institutions.

Calls for accountability 

CWR called on the Marcos, Jr. administration, the Philippine National Police, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines to implement measures to address abuse committed by men in uniform.

The group urged authorities to establish independent oversight and civilian accountability mechanisms, ensure impartial and transparent investigations, and strengthen survivor-centered support systems.

It also called for sustained gender sensitivity and human rights education within police and military institutions, alongside the full implementation of the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act and the Magna Carta of Women.

“At a time when violence against women remains widespread, the state cannot remain complicit through inaction, let alone allow its own agents to become perpetrators of abuse and violence against women,” Perez said. “Those entrusted to protect the public must be held to the highest standard of accountability.”

CWR said that women’s groups will continue exposing systemic abuses while pushing for a society where women and children can live free from violence and fear. (DAA)

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MANILA – Despite the rains, progressive groups led by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) protested in front of the Senate of the Philippines on May 18 calling for the immediate trial of Vice President Sara Duterte and for the arrest of Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.  

Jerome Adonis, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) chairperson, said that Duterte should be found guilty in the impeachment trial. He said that the main reason people gathered for the large rally outside was to witness the proceedings and hold officials accountable to the Filipino people.

“We should not allow thieves to escape accountability and continue living comfortably,” Adonis said in Filipino. 

Raymond Palatino, Bayan secretary-general, was enraged over what he described as the Senate’s orchestrated efforts as regards delays in Duterte’s impeachment trial and Dela Rosa’s escape from the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court. 

“The Senate should not become an institution that protects the corrupt and murderers. If the Senate refuses to act, then we, the people, are ready to take action,” Palatino said in Filipino. 

When asked why she joined the protest, Fatima Mendoza of the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman student council said that this is not the time to remain silent. “We have the strength to bring down rotten leadership. This was shown by the more than 8,000 Iskolar ng Bayan who staged a walkout last year.”

Later that day, the Senate convened as an impeachment court for Duterte’s trial. The Makabayan bloc said, “This is a necessary constitutional step toward accountability.” 

The progressive legislators stressed that they expect the Senate to perform their duty with “seriousness and dispatch.” 

“We call on Vice President Duterte to promptly submit her answer to the articles of impeachment and to fully recognize the jurisdiction of the Senate impeachment court. There should be no more dilatory tactics, no attempts to evade or question the legitimacy of the process, and no political maneuvers to delay the presentation of evidence and the start of the trial. Let’s get it on,” Makabayan said. 

They urged the public to engage in what they call an important process because without public vigilance, “the pro- Duterte senators can move to delay the trial, suppress evidence and win their way towards an acquittal.”

“At the end of the day, public pressure is key to ensuring the conviction of VP Duterte,” they said. 

Bayan also called for sustained public vigilance and street protests. “Last week’s chaotic events exposed how corrupt and lawless Senators can maneuver to provide sanctuary for Senator Bato dela Rosa in order to get his vote for a change of leadership; subsequently, to facilitate his escape despite a valid warrant issued by the ICC for his major role in Rodrigo Duterte’s so-called drug war,” Bayan said in a statement. 

“These same spurious ‘majority’—composed of out-and-out Duterte loyalists, many with plunder cases hovering over their heads, and some very ambitious personalities—can and will certainly conspire to undermine the impeachment of Sara Duterte by delaying the proceedings, restricting the presentation of evidence, and creating scenarios to weaken the trial,” they said. 

They called on the public to remain vigilant, form or join “Impeachment Watch” activities in schools, communities and workplaces; step up protests against impunity; and continue the fight for truth, accountability, and justice. (DAA)

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MANILA — In the wake of the Commission on Higher Education’s (CHED) plan to remove general education (GE) courses in college, members of the academic community launched the General Education Movement (GEM) at the Philippine Normal University (PNU) on May 16.

The movement vowed not only to defend but also to further develop and strengthen GE courses after CHED postponed the implementation of the Reframed General Education Curriculum Component (RGECC) until 2028. For the academic community, this was considered an initial victory following the May 12 protest held at the CHED main office. However, they stressed that the threats against GE subjects are far from over under an education system they describe as colonial, market-oriented, and profit-driven.

“There is a need not to remain silent even if CHED postponed its plan to reduce GE subjects. We must continue engaging with different institutions and conducting consultations from the ground. This is where we can consolidate our greatest strength in fighting these threats against GE subjects,” said Dr. Jonathan Geronimo of the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman and one of the initiators of GEM.

CHED’s highly criticized move to reduce GE subjects from 36 units to 18–21 units drew opposition from the academic sector, as this supposed “solution” to address learning gaps would create more harm than good, according to GEM.

According to Dr. David Michael San Juan of De La Salle University (DLSU)-Manila and lead convenor of Tanggol Wika, the Technical Panel on General Education that produced the RGECC is connected to PHINMA Corporation and iPeople Education. These corporations operate in partnership with the Ayala and Yuchengco groups which also own APEC Schools, a stand-alone senior high school system in the country.

“Two co-chairs of the Technical Panel on General Education come from schools connected to iPeople. Are we going to allow people who represent big corporations and treat education as a business to shape our curriculum?” San Juan said.

He stressed that a manifestation of liberalized education is its excessive focus on profit. “They want to quantify everything with numbers. If many students are unemployed, they immediately think education is failing. They do not even bother to ask whether we have enough industries in our underdeveloped country.”

For the academic community, reducing the number of GE courses would weaken critical and creative thinking among students which are integral to holistic development as citizens with a shared sense of humanity.

“Removing GE subjects means undermining critical thinking and human development among our students. Subjects such as Humanities, History, Ethics, Arts, and Filipino, among others, are what make educational institutions relevant not only to knowledge but also to society and the nation as a whole,” said Prof. Jun Rivera, president of Samahan ng mga Dalubguro sa Filipinolohiya (SADAFIL) from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP).

San Juan said that 60,000 to 90,000 faculty members could be displaced based on their computations. Drawing from their experience in 2013 when CHED removed Filipino courses from the college curriculum, he said that the government proved unable, unwilling, and incapable of fully protecting teachers from displacement, load reduction, and de facto salary cuts.

“As long as Filipino remains part of the curriculum, the people will continue to have a voice in education. But once it is completely removed, not only will the subject disappear, but also our ability to recognize whom education should truly serve,” said Ashley Guarin, president of PUP-Ugnayan ng Talino at Kagalingan.

GEM vowed to continue its campaign to defend GE courses as it called on CHED to junk the RGECC, ensure genuine and democratic public participation in curriculum reforms, strengthen existing GE subjects, and restore Filipino and Panitikan subjects in the college curriculum. (DAA)

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The Philippines is known as the global epicenter for the production of financially-motivated child sexual abuse or exploitation materials (CSAEM), according to the International Justice Mission. In 2022 alone, one in 100 Filipino children was found to be trafficked to produce CSAEM.

The children who took part in the study of Terre des Hommes Netherlands identified several barriers on why they do not avail the child protection services: Around 78 percent have fear of shame or blame, 65 percent have fear of being outed, 60 percent have distrust in adults or responders, and 52 percent pointed to the lack of gender-sensitive services.

Only one in three children access child protection services against online sexual abuse, especially LGBTQIA+ youth and women, due to fear of being blamed, judged, or outed.

The cases of online sexual abuse or exploitation of children (OSAEC) against LGBTQIA+ children are also not reported. The reporting systems remain binary — data segregated through male and female options — which further affect the access of LGBTQIA+ children to preventive and protective services.

“There is a lack of trauma-informed, gender-sensitive, and age-appropriate child protection services,” the study noted. “The weak social protection and child protection systems resonate with the experience of OSAEC survivors on the lack of interventions for the victims and the family. Community services cater to all children and young people and there are no specific modifications to make them accessible to girls and LGBTQI children.”

The study showed that children from poor families may resort to OSAEC to earn money. Some parents may knowingly overlook the issue as OSAEC becomes a livelihood for the family. 

“My mother died and I was being looked after by my auntie and her family is poor. I am not the priority in terms of food, so I support myself,” a 16-year-old OSAEC survivor said in the study.

“It appears that poverty— may it be the lack of resources for the family or poverty caused by social issues including drug addiction among parents— is the main driver of OSAEC,” the study said.

The study also reported a disconnect between knowledge and capacity. It found that the knowledge about OSAEC is relatively low particularly at the barangay level. 

The Barangay Council for the Protection of Children (BCPC) is found to be non-functional as the officers are co-terminus with the elected officials. The study stressed that the structure is problematic as it takes time for the local government units (LGUs) to organize their council and the people are not trained about their mandate.

Only 16 percent of the children are aware about preventative and protective interventions. While 84 percent of the respondents expressed confidence in the services, there is no data about how many of those needing help actually sought it.

“The participation of children and young people in decision-making is more consultative rather than collaborative,” the study noted, saying that very little is done to raise the awareness of the community, children, and young people about OSAEC. 

“We recognize the urgent and growing threat of OSAEC and other online risks. While Republic Act No. 11930 strengthens national mechanisms, law alone is not enough to protect children,” said Anna Belinde, Philippine country director of Terre des Hommes Netherlands, in a statement based on the organization’s recent study.

Republic Act No. 11930 or Anti-OSAEC and Anti-CSAEM Act provides mandatory services for the victims ranging from emergency shelter, counseling, legal services, medical or psychological services, livelihood and skills training, and educational assistance.

“Protection requires shifting power to those closest to the risks, children, families, and communities, while ensuring institutions and industry are accountable for how digital spaces are designed and governed,” Belinde said.

Barbara Mae Pagdilao-Flores, executive director of the National Coordination Center Against OSAEC and CSAEM, said that the safety of children online is not only a responsibility of one office, one agency, or one sector alone. “Government must lead, but we must also bring the whole system together—law enforcement, prosecutors, child protection actors, digital platforms, telcos, financial institutions, civil society, and communities—so that our response is coordinated, practical, and felt by children on the ground,” she said.

Flores said that the online risks become more complex with the proliferation of artificial intelligence, deepfakes, grooming, and the misuse of children’s images. 

UNICEF reported that at least 1.2 million children across 11 countries were victimized by OSAEC and CSAEM, having their images manipulated into sexually-explicit deepfakes through artificial intelligence. 

The United States-based National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NMEC) reported a 1,550 percent increase in the use of generative artificial intelligence to create sexual exploitation content, reported through their platform CyberTipline. (DAA, RVO)

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