KASIBU, NUEVA VIZCAYA – Nationwide members and partners of Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) visit Barangay Didipio in solidarity with the barricade of DESAMA to call the immediate removal of OceanaGold Philippines Inc. (OGPI) operations in the area. A day after the expiration of the Financial and Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) of OGPI in 2019, farmers…
Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya – Provincial Governor Carlos Padilla, local communities, indigenous people, and church organizations sustained strong opposition on the Financial and Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) renewal of Oceanagold Philippines Inc (OGPI) in a dialogue held today at Saint Mary’s University. The Bishops-LGU-Community dialogue activity was co-hosted by Bishop Jose Elmer Mangalinao of the Diocese…
Weeks before the National Correctional Consciousness Week (NACOCOW), human rights groups gather together and liken to the game-show “Laban o Bawi?,” President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to recall the release of Persons Deprived of their Liberties (PDL) because of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) mess. In a forum entitled “Laya o Bawi?” on October 11,…
Several lawyers, artists, Church people, members of the academe and labor rights advocates launched the Labor Rights Defender Network (LaRD-Net) on October 9, 2019. The formation of this new network is a response to the growing need to consolidate the ranks of labor rights defenders in support of workers in the midst of continuing violation…
“While we are thankful for the P1, 000 Teachers’ Day incentive for we consider this as a birthday gift, we ask the DepEd to raise the level of our teachers by providing for long-term solutions to our socio-economic woes.” Benjo Basas, the National Chairperson of the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) said amidst the scheduled release…
Quezon City, Philippines – Premiering on the eve of the 47th anniversary of the Martial Law declaration, the 7th edition of Active Vista International Human Rights Film Festival presented last Sept 20, 2019 to around 1,000 invited audiences at the Cine Adarna of the University of the Philippines Film Center the much-awaited screening of the…
QUEZON CITY – Two hundred people from Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice and Power 4 People Coalition assemble in front of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) office; highlighting the current state of human rights violations and killings of environmental defenders. According to the Global Witness Report in…
(Groups vow to keep up the pressure against dumping of foreign wastes in PH) 19 September 2019, Quezon City. As the authorities grapple with the repacking of over 5,000 tons of illegal waste cargoes stranded in Misamis Oriental for re-export to South Korea, environmental health and justice groups vow to keep up the pressure to…
Workers initiated the series of protests today commemorating the anniversary of the declaration of martial law at the DOLE, denouncing intensified repression and violence by both capitalists and the government. Led by the socialist political center, Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), workers from Cosmic Enterprises Inc., Zagu Foods, Megacem, Pacific Plaza Towers, and Bestank raised…
What’s in Negros Island that killings, violence and poverty keep on pounding the province and its people seems to have not known peace in their lives? Why is the State is using it as a laboratory or testing ground for something so dangerous that they seem desiring for the entire country? The series of extrajudicial…
Members of the group Partido Manggagawa (PM) picketed this morning the main office of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to demand that the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (NTIPC) be convened to investigate the killing of a union organizer in Cavite. The mass action coincides with the 40th day since the brutal shooting…
The labor rights NGO, Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) vehemently condemns the barbaric and brutal attack against the striking workers of Peerless Producers Manufacturing Corporation (PEPMACO), manufacturer of Champion brand detergent and other surfactants. At around 1:00 in the morning of June 28, 2019, hundreds of goons and security guards wearing masks…
14 June 2019, Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental/Quezon City. The EcoWaste Coalition, an environmental health and justice group, welcomed the agreement reached by the governments of the Philippines and South Korea toward the repatriation of 5,177 tons of illegal traffic waste originating from the latter. At a bilateral meeting held yesterday in Tagoloan and chaired by Port…
The reference is the P10,000 across the board increase for teachers and we anticipate that the government will work for it. This amount which will be applicable to all teachers regardless of position is much lower than what the government has previously granted to the military and uniformed personnel by way of a Congressional Joint…
This was the answer of the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) on the recent statement made by Secretary Leonor Magtolis-Briones as regards to their call for an increase in the salaries of public school teachers. Benjo Basas, the group’s national Chairperson said that they knew from the start that they will “never get rich by embracing…
The labor group Partido Manggagawa (PM) condemned the killing of the vice chairperson of its Cavite chapter. The group called on the authorities to investigate and solve the killing. Dennis Sequena was shot and killed earlier today in Brgy. Bunga, Tanza, Cavite while meeting a group of workers. He was shot by a gunman who…
“Disyembre pa lamang ng taong 2015 ay ipinangako na ng noo’y Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte ang umento sa sahod ng mga guro kung siya ay magiging pangulo. Hanggang ngayon ay naghihintay kami sa katuparan ng pangakong ito.” Said Benjo Basas, the national Chairperson of the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC). As the new school year…
The families of the disappeared together with other human rights defenders (HRDs) capped the International Week of the Disappeared flying kites at the Quezon Memorial Circle on Sunday. In a statement, Albay Rep. Edcel C. Lagman, Honorary Chairperson of the Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND), said that, “The soaring kites signify sustaining the…
As the schools reopen on Monday, teachers once again ask the government to at least give priority to their welfare concerns as it would be very crucial to ensure the delivery of education service that redounds to quality output for the country’s citizen. Benjo Basas, the group’s national chairperson reiterated, “In a few days, classes…
27 May 2019, Quezon City. The spate of illegal waste shipments intercepted by customs authorities drove an environmental group to call on all Filipinos to raise the flag and make a collective stance against the entry of garbage from overseas. The EcoWaste Coalition, an environmental health and justice group, suggested the move as the country…
