HK activists join anti-govt, anti-martial law protest at PCG

Protesters who denounced martial law also called for an end to Duterte's 'tyrannical rule'

By Daisy CL Mandap

Local activists led by former legislator Leung Kwok-hung, better known as “Long Hair”, joined a protest at the Consulate on Sept. 20, a day ahead of the 46^th anniversary of the declaration of martial law by the deposed Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos.

Leung, who represented the League of Social Democrats, said that both Marcos and the incumbent President, Rodrigo Duterte, promised a new society to Filipinos seeking changes. “But where is it now?” he asked.

He expressed concern at what he said were the “tens of thousands of people being threatened by secret police,” in reference to the reported extra-judicial killings being carried out in the Philippines in pursuit of Duterte’s war on drugs.

 

Speakers included Pelaez (foreground), Villanueva (with cap),
and beside him, 'Long Hair' Leung  and Mong

Another local activist, Mong Siu-tat of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, said: “We are fighting not just for the dead, but also for the living.”

Mong said that if no one protested now, the killings in the Philippines will continue, as they have in other parts of the world.

“The fight must continue regardless of who you are, no matter where you are from,” he said. “Together let us build a more democratic society.”

The organizers of the protest, made up of various militant Filipino organizations and individuals in Hong Kong, said in a statement: “There are many signs that the Duterte government is setting the stage for the declaration of a nationwide martial law or a similar draconian measure on a national scale.”

This is said to be seen in the removal of the Chief Justice, the filing of trumped-up charges against known personalities in the opposition and the progressive movement, and the declaration of martial law in Mindanao under the guise of fighting terrorism.

The statement likened Duterte’s crackdown on the united opposition to Marcos’ brutal suppression of Filipinos’ struggle for land, decent employment, human rights and justice.

One of their leaders, Dolores Balladares-Pelaez, zeroed in on two major concerns: the violent killings of more than 20,000 Filipinos in line with Duterte’s anti-drug campaign, and the eviction of tribal people from their lands, notably the lumads.

Leung said Duterte, like Marcos, failed to deliver the promised change

In closing, another speaker, Eman Villanueva, noted that the International People’s Tribunal had just declared Duterte guilty of “gross human rights violations.”

He said the Hong Kong protesters fully support the findings, and will continue their fight against Duterte’s tyrannical rule to ensure the dark days of martial in the Philippines “never happen again.”

Villanueva also announced that on the next day, tens of thousands of Filipinos were due to hold various rallies in the Philippines “not only to commemorate martial law, but also to oppose Duterte’s looming dictatorship.”

Martial law in the Philippines was declared by Marcos on Sept 21, 1972, purportedly to avert subversion by anti-government forces, but in reality, was meant to allow him to extend his iron-fist rule for 20 years.

Marcos lifted martial law in 1981, and was overthrown through a popular revolt on Feb. 25, 1986.

According to the human rights group, Amnesty International, more than 70,000 Filipinos were arrested during martial law, 34,000 were tortured, and 3,240 were killed by the military and the police.