Troops are back in Metro Manila communities
MANILA — The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan today denounced the return of the military in urban communities in Metro Manila, saying that the redeployment was timed with the impending effectivity of the Human Security Act of 2007.
“The Arroyo regime is setting up a very dangerous scenario here. The troops are back and the terror law is set to take effect. All these evoke an atmosphere of state terror aimed at the people. This government is bent on escalating repression,” said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.
Reyes said he believed that the presence of troops in Metro communities will be used as another “fear factor” against Arroyo’s critics and community organizers especially in depressed communities.
“The claim that the AFP will conduct lectures against the recruitment activities of the New People’s Army is simply preposterous. It is a lame excuse for justifying military presence in Metro Manila. It is a feeble justification for psy-war and repression,” Reyes said.
“The real intent of the redeployment is to terrorize people so that they won’t join anti-Arroyo protests. Their real targets are the community organizations and leaders who have been tagged as “communist fronts” and “sympathizers”. This was admitted by the AFP during a hearing with the Commission on Human Rights last April,” Reyes explained.
Bayan also called attention to the AFP’s gross human rights record saying that public fear cannot be assuaged when the military is repeatedly linked to abductions and murders.
“The AFP said it will even give lectures versus communism to children in day care centers. This is ridiculous!” Reyes said.
“That the AFP is being tagged in the abduction of Jonas Burgos and in the extrajudicial killings of activists is already a reason not to allow the military to return to the communities. These elements pose a danger to human rights and civil liberties. These soldiers may even be used to stop people from joining the big State of the Nation Address rallies set on July 23,” Reyes said.
Reyes said that they have received reports of the return of the AFP in Metro communities as early as June.
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