The Kilusang Mayo Uno-Southern Mindanao region today expressed apprehension over the proposed revival of the National ID System, saying that the measure will backtrack the hard-won victories of human rights as this fascist administration continues its hopeless witch hunt, all the while victimizing innocent civilians and human rights defenders.
Romualdo Basilio, chair of KMU-SMR, said that the government is failing tremendously in its campaign to neutralize the communist insurgency by its self-imposed target in 2010. Hell-bent as she is to obliterate the CPP and the NPA, Arroyo and her dogs in the AFP are not much concerned with what they call collateral damage. In the hands of world-renowned human rights violators like the AFP and the PNP, the national ID system will only worsen the distressing state of human rights in the country.
The AFP is clear in its intention for the ID system as a counter-insurgency measure. This makes the ID system more susceptible to military and police abuse. If the present counter-insurgency drive of the AFP already demonizes legitimate mass actions of workers like strikes and demonstrations, we can only imagine the kind of black-listing the military will do against militant workers with the ID system.
He reiterated that in 1998 the Supreme Court has already axed the National ID system, ruling that it posed a clear and present danger and would violate the privacy guaranteed by the Constitution.
Basilio also ridiculed the cost-saving reason by the proponents of system. It is a lame excuse to assert the implementation of the ID system just because the administration is suddenly concerned by people having multiple cards. There are other more pressing concerns the Arroyo administration needs to address, like generating regular jobs, raising wage levels and providing better social services.
He warned that future machinations of Arroyos lapdogs in Congress to press for the ID system will surely be met with widespread protest by the people. We will take to the streets until we see the end of this preposterous tactics of the government to curtail our basic freedoms and rights, he concluded.##
Reference: Nels Bautista, Media Officer 0918.649.5881
Romualdo Basilio 0906.835.3670
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