Raids, harassment prelude to crackdown – rights group
Raids, harassment prelude to crackdown – rights group
By Anne Marxze D. Umil
MANILA – Human rights group Karapatan denounced a series of raids and harassment against peasant leaders and rights advocates.
The latest incident happened on June 18 in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan where soldiers ransacked the house of Tanggol Magsasaka Secretary-General and Spokesperson Ronnie Manalo.
Cristina Palabay, secretary-general of Karapatan, said in a statement that these incidents may be a “prelude to a major crackdown against peasant leaders, activists and farmers’ rights advocates.”
According to KMP, soldiers forcibly entered Manalo’s unoccupied house at around 7:00 am on June 18. The group said that the soldiers, reportedly belonging to the 80th Infantry Battalion, illegally searched Manalo’s house and claimed to have found a firearm. Just like in previous raids of activists’ houses and offices, KMP stressed that the evidence was fabricated.
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