Alliance-Philippines
November 17, 2009

THE NOYNOY AQUINO CANDIDACY AND THE HACIENDA LUISITA MASSACRE OF 2004

Los Angeles--- The Alliance-Philippines (AJLPP) expresses its militant solidarity the Filipino peasants specially those of the Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac owned by the Aquino family in commemorating the fifth anniversary of the massacre that happened in November 16, 2004 where 14 peasants were killed by brutal fascists troops.

The Hacienda Luisita case has became prominent again with the candidacy of the son of the owner, former President Cory Aquino, now, Senator Benigno Aquino Jr. to the presidency of the land.

In 1985, Cory Aquino ran against Marcos and promised she will be the exact opposite of Marcos but did poorly to fulfill her promise. She just brought back the trappings of democracy like the bourgeois congress and elections but kept her hacienda and exempted it under her fake land reform program in 1988.

Doing the same, Noynoy, the scion of the Aquino clan claims” they only own 4% of the corporation” and lets another fellow landlord, Mar Roxas of the Araneta-Roxas clan to speak for him on this landmark land case.

Ominous Silence

The damming silence of Aquino on the Hacienda Luisita case only shows that the two landlord partners in the Liberal party has no program for land reform much more In solving the centuries old problem of land.

This is because it will not for their interest to implement genuine land reform and give land to the landlless.For them, it much better to talk abut other issues than give solution to the problem for which they caused.

As long as landlord and bureaucrat capitalist hold sway over the scores of big haciendas and corporations that serve the foreigners, we cannot unshackle the peasants from age old-centuries of feudalism and semi-feudalism.

We need basic change: the nationalization of land, corporations and public properties to serve the interests of the majority. Only then, the Philippines can prosperous, progressive and truly free.


ALLIANCE PHILIPPINES
National Secretariat
November 17, 2009

Unholy Alliance:

Nacionalista Party of Manny Villar
Nationalist People's Coalition of Danding Cojuangco and Loren Legarda
MAKABAYAN Party of Ka Satur Ocampo (Bayan Muna)
Bongbong Marcos, son of the former Dictator

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From ABS-CBN News:
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/11/10/09/villar-alliance-leftists-final-stages

Villar alliance with leftists in final stages

MANILA - Negotiations for a potential alliance between the Nacionalista Party (NP) of Senator Manuel Villar and the extreme left are in the final stages, two weeks before the start of the filing of certificates of candidacy for the May 2010 polls....

Diverse group

Villar has been trying to put up a diverse list of senatorial candidates with initial reports saying the NP’s line-up includes detained Marine Col. Ariel Querubin, Rep. FERDINAND "BONGBONG"MARCOS, and former Makati Rep. Agapito 'Butz' Aquino (SUPPORTER of ERAP ESTRADA).

Ocampo said the diverse and possibly conflicting personalities in the senatorial line-up should not matter as long as “we agree on GOOD GOVERNACE and REFORMS.”

Asked how the militant group would be able to reconcile its pro-poor image with a capitalist like Villar, Ocampo said the former Senate president is not known to have engaged in exploitative labor practices.

Casiño, in a separate interview, said any alliance between Makabayan and a traditional political party should be anchored on a ”PRICIPLED PLATFORM”

Ocampo said Makabayan is also negotiating that two of its senatorial bet be included in the senatorial line-up of the political party it chooses to forge an alliance with....

[So being in alliance with Bongbong Marcos is principled and based on good governance and reforms?]

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Abandoning Escudero

Earlier, Makabayan, which is seeking to field three senatorial candidates, was reported to have thrown its support for the NPC’s presumptive standard-bearer Senator Francis Escudero.

But Escudero’s surprise move to leave the NPC and possibly contest the presidency without a political party has made Makabayan reassess its strategy.

Ocampo said Makabayan and Escudero “agree on many things, at least on the basic platforms and policies,” but the senator’s decision to eschew party politics has prompted Makabayan to reconsider its options.

[So Francis Escudero is being abandoned by BAYAN-Bayan-Muna-MAKABAYAN just because he has cut ties with the multi-billionaire tycoon and former Marcos crony Danding Cojuanco? Danding Cojuanco has been accused of pocketing the Coco Levy Funds from the poor farmers. Danding Cojuanco is the power behind NPC, the party of Loren Legarda. Loren Legarda is the running mate of Manny Villar]

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From the Nacionalista Party Website:
http://www.nacionalistaparty.com/faq.html

Q: Are the Nacionalistas pro-administration or opposition?

A: The Nacionalista Party is PART of a COALITION SUPPORTIVE of THE PRESENT ADMINISTRATION (of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo). However, true to its character of independence, there are members of Congress who belong to the minority, and even positions taken by its leaders which may, at times, run counter to the dictates of Malacañang.

[Nacionalista Party is the Party of Manny Villar]
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On C5 Extention Project:

Please have time to read the following:

Jamby insists Villar benefitted from C5 project, may be charged for plunder
http://2010.pinoyvote.info/presidentiables/manny-villar-presidentiables/manny-villar-controversies/jamby-insists-villar-benefitted-from-c5-project-may-be-charged-for-plunder/

Jamby slams Loren over Villar acquittal
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/11/17/09/jamby-slams-loren-over-villar-acquittal

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On Cory Aquino:

NDF: Cory an ‘Outstanding and Inspiring Figure’
http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2009/08/02/ndf-cory-an-outstanding-and-inspiring-figure/

Satur: NDF has a lot to thank Cory for
http://newsbreak.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6536&Itemid=88889476&ed=44

Messages of condolence on the death of former President Corazon Aquino (from NDF, Joma Sison, Liza Maza (Gabriela), KMP, KMU, etc:
http://www.arkibongbayan.org/2009/2009-08-Aug03-coryaquino/coryquinosept6-2005.htm

Last Sunday, Former Sectoral Representative Loretta Ann Rosales, Akbayan chair emeritus, wrote Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino, III, the Liberal Party presidential candidate on the Hacienda Luisita issue.

Here’s Etta’s letter:

Dear Noynoy,

I write you as friend and former colleague in Congress re Hacienda Luisita, an issue that involves not just your family and the farmers of Tarlac but, of larger import, the issue of land and the crisis of food production threatened by climate change. I make this an open letter to include in our conversation the people who have clamored for you to run for president.
“November 16 marks the day when seven farmers of Tarlac were killed initially and scores injured by security forces that attacked protesting farmers pressing to open the gates of the Hacienda. It is therefore no surprise that the issue has surfaced in a broadsheet and will continue to be the subject of media reports to get your position on the matter.

The following points may be helpful for us to consider.

We are all committed to seeking a peaceful and just solution to the issue of Hacienda Luisita farmers. This is in line with the spirit of social justice defined by international law on human rights, the 1987 Charter and tenets of the newly passed CARPER law (although some of its provisions remain controversial, as they represent views from recalcitrant landed interests).

Perhaps we can address specific issues on the ground and resolve them from a rights-based perspective, the underpinnings of governance that ensures government for all and not just for a few.

One, while you may not have been aware, it is true that Hacienda Luisita Inc. issued a letter stating that all occupants must vacate the land end-October. This triggered strong emotions from farmers who had occupied the land as a matter of survival, which occupation followed the paralysis of organized production with the tragic killings of November 16 and shortly after (a total of fourteen farm workers were killed).

Two, it is equally true that some of the occupying farm workers did rent out the land they occupied to those who were financially capable of using the land for crops they wanted to plant. It must have been a matter of survival – they had nothing to eat, they had zero income, they had no capital for production. Renting out was a way of making both ends meet while the land reform question remains pending. One can readily conclude that it mattered less to the farmers that the renters were insiders or outsiders, farm workers or not. To provide food and shelter for the family was paramount.

Three, the issue of Stock Distribution Option (SDO) as an agrarian reform scheme precedes CARPER; it was in Section 31 of the original CARP. We now have to deal with the new law.

Four, SDO likewise preceded your run for the presidency; you inherited a problem that needs to be resolved peacefully but with dispatch for the common good. This is especially urgent in the light of the emerging food crisis where climate change has affected not just Philippine rice fields but also fields from Vietnam and Taiwan, traditional sources of imported rice.

Five, when farmers lack capital to produce crops, they will not hesitate to reach out to outsiders to rent their lands. Sending notices to the farmers to rid them of non-SDO members does not alleviate the hardship. It merely exposes the problem of the dearth of capital and support services.

Six, the only guarantee that support services can be provided the farm workers is after the land has been fully and completely awarded to them by the DAR. And this is at least a possibility under the CARPER framework.

Seven, AKBAYAN is committed to the call for land redistribution in Hacienda Luisita and we hope that our current alliance with the Liberal Party will hasten and facilitate the enforcement of this call. We look forward to a meaningful and long-term solution to Hacienda Luisita anchored on social justice, human rights and an ecology-based system for sustainable development.

Your friend as always,
Etta P. Rosales
AKBAYAN Chair Emeritus

The Full Truth: Noynoy and Hacienda Luisita (Must-Read)
http://truthsayer.tumblr.com/

A summary of well-researched articles published on GMANews.TV.

Noynoy's well-documented involvement in Luisita:

1. Noynoy Defends Military and Police Action During Luisita Massacre
Noynoy spreads lies about the massacre.

2. Noynoy's Escorts Tagged in Shooting of Luisita Farm Workers
Witness calls them "mga bata ni Noynoy Aquino," "mga private army ni Congressman," and "parang security guard, parang bodyguard."

3. Noynoy's "Superhighway"
5 years before Noynoy's presidential campaign, a witness testifies that Noynoy told Luisita farmers to say yes to his SCTEx Luisita road project.

4. SCTEx Investigation
Government overpaid P247 million for Noynoy's project.

5. Hello Garci and Luisita
Hello Garci comes out while Gloria's Task Force Luisita is investigating the case.

6. Cory and Noynoy Praise and Defend Gloria
Even after Gloria's "I am sorry" speech.

7. Noynoy Votes Against Playing Garci Tapes

8. Cory and Noynoy Drop Gloria Abruptly
Just 8 days after Noynoy protected Gloria. The same month Task Force Luisita submitted the findings and recommendations of its investigation, which led to the government's decision to order the distribution of the hacienda.

9. Still No Justice for Massacre and Murder Victims

10. Still No Land Distribution
Jose Cojuangco Sr., Cory's father, received large loans to buy the hacienda, on the condition that it would be DISTRIBUTED TO THE FARMERS BY 1967. Now, 43 years later, the land has still not been distributed. There has never been any valid reason why this was not done and many people have been killed for demanding justice.

Read the full story at: http://truthsayer.tumblr.com/

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