Amancio Carmelo, the secretary-general for Southern Mindanao of the progressive peasant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, survived an assassination attempt in Tagum City Monday afternoon. According to initial reports, armed…
ELUSIVE JUSTICE. On Jan. 22, 1987, government security forces opened fire on farmers and peasants protesting at the historic Mendiola, the site of many anti-government demonstrations. Thirteen people were killed and dozens of others were injured.
In the wake of the signing earlier this month of an Asean Convention on Counter-Terrorism, the Arroyo administration has been pushing for the passage of the anti-terrorism bill now pending in the Philippine Senate, arguing that it would strengthen the country’s war against terror and would serve as a model for other Asean nations. But Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. argues that Senate Bill No. 2137 (pdf) is “the most terrifying piece of legislation ever submitted for the consideration of the Senate.”
If the accusation that the Arroyo administration was behind the bombings in Mindanao earlier this month turns out to be true, then this has got to be the worst scenario ever cooked up by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo?s military intelligence experts to justify their agenda of convincing the public of a need to pass an anti-terror measure.
Mindanews reported yesterday that Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is being considered as the next defense secretary. (We cannot provide the link to the story because the Mindanews website, as of 9 a.m. today, has been hacked.) The story mentioned the praises Duterte has received lately from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Senate president Manuel Villar, mainly for the mayor’s efforts to keep his city safe from criminals.