‘People Power Pa Rin!’: Nationally Coordinated Protests Set for EDSA 1 Commemoration

The umbrella group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan today announced that there will be nationally coordinated protests on Monday, the 25th anniversary of the EDSA 1 People Power uprising that toppled the Marcos dictatorship.

The group said that actions will be held from Baguio to Mindanao as the nation observes the EDSA 1 anniversary amid fresh allegations of corruption and calls for resignation facing the Arroyo administration. Various groups are still finalizing details for protest actions in Metro Manila but the theme will revolve around “reaffirming the need for collective action in the tradition of People Power.”

Bayan also said that their action on Monday will be a build-up towards what could become a big “interfaith prayer rally for truth, justice and accountability” that was announced by Catholic bishops last Tuesday.

“Now more than ever, we need to recall the lessons of people power and so we can come up with an improved version for our times. The new people power will not simply be led by any religious leader ala Cardinal Sin. Nor will it just seek to replace one regime with a worse one. We have certainly learned lessons from EDSA 1 and EDSA 2,” said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.

As a response to the calls by Archbishop Angel Lagdameo of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines for a “new brand” of people power, Bayan said it already senses differences with the protest movement today, compared with the past two EDSA’s.

“Perhaps the difference with people power today is that it’s seeds are emerging from various sectors of society despite there being no Cardinal Sin to call for it. People power is springing forth from the grassroots, the schools, factories, communities, businesses, with various political formations are coming together. It is spreading despite the limitations of the church hierarchy,” Reyes said.

The CBCB has yet to call for the resignation of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo yet this has not prevented many religious leaders and formations to undertake various forms of protest actions.

“If there will be a people power for our times, people also want to see real empowerment and reforms. We can’t just be contented with installing a replacement for Arroyo which might end up as being much worse. There is a new level of vigilance in this regard. People want to have a say in what happens after Arroyo, and not just leave matters to the politicians,” Reyes said.

While the Bayan leader admitted that the protest movement is still a long way from achieving critical mass ala EDSA 1, “the important thing is for the protests to spread.”

“There are many forms of protests and communal actions that we can do. Right now it is important for these protests to be popularized. There will also be big actions in between, like the one we saw in Ayala last February 15 and the upcoming EDSA 1 protests and the interfaith prayer rally,” Reyes said.

Last Tuesday, Lagdameo and other church leaders held a dialogue with members of the Makati Business Club, Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines, Integrated Bar of the Philippines, militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), the Concerned Citizens Group, Black and White Movement, Gabriela, Jesus is Lord Movement, Bangon Pilipinas, Solidarity Philippines, Muslim Legal Assistance Foundation, La Salle Brothers, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, National Council of Churches in the Philippines, Kubol Pag-Asa, and various youth groups and student councils in Metro Manila.

“Both the religious and the various sectors present are hopeful something good will result from the dialogue,” Reyes added.

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