A delegation led by Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) presidential candidate Leody de Guzman came under gunfire in Mindanao on April 19, while meeting with members of an Indigenous tribe on their occupied lands, reports Susan Price.
Mindanao
Filipino socialist group, the Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM), released the statement slightly abridged below on September 3 after the Australian government announced to it would send special forces to work with the murderous Rodrigo Duterte regime in Mindanao in the name of the 鈥渨ar on terror鈥.
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The PLM demands that the Australian government withdraw the two Australian air force Orion spy planes participating in combat since June in Marawi, Mindanao, and abandon plans announced by Australian government ministers to send special forces.
In a move reminiscent of Australia鈥檚 infamous military ties to Indonesia鈥檚 murderous Suharto dictatorship, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop announced on September 1 that Australia would send special forces to the Philippines.
Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte鈥檚 annual State of the Nation (SONA) address on July 24 reflected his government鈥檚 increasing trajectory towards dictatorship. Outside, protest marches converged on the parliamentary complex at Batasan, reflecting the growing grassroots opposition to the worsening dictatorial trend.
Filipino police and military forces in the small city of Marawi on the island of Mindanao attempted to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, a leader of the Abu Sayyaf criminal gang, on May 23. By the end of the day, President Rodrigo Duterte鈥檚 government had declared martial law throughout the island for 60 days and launched a military assault.
By June 2, that ongoing assault, including air strikes, had killed at least 160 people and displaced hundreds of thousands.
This dramatic escalation represents the further slide of Duterte鈥檚 administration towards authoritarian rule and a betrayal of his election campaign promise to pursue a negotiated end to Mindanao鈥檚 multiple insurgencies.
The following statement was released by Filipino socialist party on May 25 in response to the government's May 23 declaration of martial law in Mindanao for a 60-day period.
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