PHILIPPINES: AS ELECTION DAY COMES NEAR, VIOLENCE ESCALATES



Los Angeles -- Nobody can beat the brazen violence and blatant machinations of the US-Arroyo regime. It is even surpassing the US-Marcos regime in its brazenness and fascist terrorist acts.

Again, the AJLPP reiterates it call for the Filipino people to stand guard against legalized vote buying, cheating and violence in this coming elections.

AJLPP also expresses its deepest concern over the escalating violence and the propaganda in “rationalizing” its cheating activities “ in the coming elections. More than 100 armed incidents have been reported since the election season started late February 2007 in the Philippines.

The AJLPP compiled the latest updates from the Philippines:

- Six relatives of Lagayan, Abra Mayor were killed when they were ambushed by armed men believed to be the private army of Abra Governor Valera last May 4. This is the bloodiest incident in Abra and the Phiilippines.

Governor Valera is being blamed for the assassination of Congressman Bersamin in Manila last January 2007. Abra is one the most depressed area in the Philippines but is also the haven of private armies, This despite the fact that is also one of the most militarized area in Luzon because of the presence of the New People’s Army (NPA).

- The national police forces deployed hundreds of armed special action forces around the Makati City hall to implement the suspension order against opposition leader Jejomar Binay. This is the third time that the US-Arroyo regime tried to unseat Mayor Binay but relented again, postponing the suspension order after the elections due to public opinion.

- The BANTAY party list group campaigning for General Jovito Palparan ambushed a group of Mayoral candidate Junjun Villanueva in Bocaue, Bulacan last May 4. 3rd IB troops under the 7th Division,were implicated in the armed clash with the Villanueva group in Bulacan.

Palparan was reportedly mad that the Jesus in Lord Movement (JIL) headed by Jun Jun’s father, Brother Eddie Villanueva, endorsed the opposition senatorial bets and the progressive party list groups in Bulacan.

- Another shooting incident happened in Jaen, Nueva Ecija,when GMA subaltern Rodolfo Antonino, attacked the group of Mayor Tony Esquievel that killed two of Esquievel’s men and wounded two of his sons. Instead of reprimanding Antonino and his group, PGMA did nothing about the incident.

- Last April 28, Jonas Joseph Burgos, the son of anti-martial stalwart and MALAYA publisher Joe Burgos was abducted by armed men inside the GOTESCO Mall. Burgos and two of his companions are still missing until now.

Jonas Burgos is a member of the peasant association in Bulacan, the Alyansa ng mga Magbubukid ng Bualacan (AMBA- Alliance of Bulacan Peasants). He acts as a trainor for skills development of peasant leaders in the province.

Bulacan has the highest number of people who forcefully disappeared. At least 26 activist were believed to be abducted in the province of Bulacan. The European Union representatives in Manila expressed alarm about this case of abduction and forced disappearance.

The Human Rights Commission had ordered the police and military to surface Jonas Burgos. Former President Corazon Aquino also made the same call for the military to surface Jonas Burgos.

-In Pasay City, Connie Dy, another GMA stalwart is giving away school materials to children in direct violation of the COMELEC ban but the COMELEC does do anything about it.

Team Unity, the administrations bets are openly giving out materials prohibited by COMELEC without any fear of persecution and are blatantly saying that “ what they are doing is legal.”

Their leaders and candidates like Department of Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales are openly announcing that they will give cash incentives from P 10,000 to P 50,000 in every barrio or town that will vote 12-0 for the administration. On the other hand, the COMELEC plays deaf and dumb on what is happening.

Psywar and Trending Through Media Manipulations

The US-Arroyo Regime is setting the mind of the populace that their camp will beat the opposition” because they have the machinery and logistics” to win in all the areas of the Philippines.

The regime through its media network are playing up “surveys” that shows that the TEAM UNITY will win at least six senatorial sets or worse it will 12-0 in Mindanao and the Visayas. This tactics had been played on in the bourgeois media controlled by the US-Arroyo regime.

Meanwhile, the AFP units are being deployed in Metro Manila to conduct psywar campaigns against progressive party-list and harass the mass base of the party-list bailwicks in the urban centers. This is a de javu of the Marcos tactics during the elections of 1986.

PGMA Orders the Use of Military in the elections.

President Arroyo ordered the military to augment the police forces and deploy their forces to help prevent election violence. Observers feared that the military will be used again in cheating in this coming elections.

The military have been perceived to have cheated for President Arroyo last 2004 presidential elections. General Esperon is one of the generals who was implicated in the elections cheatings in 2004.

This prompted former senator Jovito Salonga to say: “General Esperon ( the AFP chief of staff) can be likened to General Ver”, the former Marcos chief of staff who managed the elections during martial law.

General Ver, Marcos chief bodyguard, was also implicated and was charged but was cleared in 1984 by a commission formed by Marcos on the assassination of Senator Benigno Aquino Jr in 1983.

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