19/01/2021
UP Manila Unity Statement to
We, the united student councils and student formations of the University of the Philippines Manila, reject the Department of National Defense's unilateral termination of the 1989 UP-DND Accord, an agreement that has sought to protect the rights and freedom to organize, express, and to hold peaceful assembly inside university grounds.
We strongly denounce the repeated efforts of the elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to infiltrate the university in the recent past disguising their malicious intents under “official” and coordinated activities. These entities have also relentlessly attacked the student leaders inside the unit by red-tagging and outright harassment. DND Secretary Lorenzana’s narrative that the abrogation of the agreement will bring about mutual understanding, better peacekeeping inside the campuses, and the provision of a “new perspective” for the students, is a narrative that no one in their right mind would believe. History has proven that state forces are the primary source of terror and brutality in the country and has silenced and murdered its critics in cold blood time and time again.
The recent enactment of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 only proves further that Duterte is guilty and culpable of the countless injustices and human rights violations that prevail under his regime and need to manipulate the law and the state’s agencies to justify these. Duterte’s administration single-handedly engineered and directed his legacies that are the war on drugs and the war on terror. These are the new faces of Martial Law under a populist tyrant in the 21st Century Philippines that has complete control over the different branches of government. Anyone who opposes or criticizes him and his lackeys are branded as subversives with attempts of silencing, and slaughter. In the middle of a pandemic, Duterte chose to turn a blind eye to the clamor of the people for aid, for concrete actions, and accountability. Instead, his regime resorted to pointing fingers and washing themselves of any liability for the disarray and suffering that his misplaced priorities and misguided actions have caused the Filipino people. After silencing the media, vilifying, trumped-up charges, state-sponsored killings of sectoral leaders, the dictator is now focusing his nefarious efforts on the students and the youth, trying to keep us in our places through a desperate crackdown on activists and anyone who is critical of his regime.
We enjoin the UP Manila Community to proactively campaign and take part in defending the university and our constituents. We will uphold the UP DND accord and all measures that are needed to enshrine and practice our democratic rights. We will not let the Duterte Administration, the Department of National Defense, the NTF-ELCAC, and all other affiliates compromise our democratic spaces.
We are resolute on resisting and we are never going to back down. The youth will continue to hold the line and uphold academic freedom — by continuing the proud traditions of the University as the bastion of activism and critical thinking. Five decades ago, the youth of their time chose to defend the University’s lifeblood during the Diliman Commune. Once again, the youth is called to oust another dictator, resist the attacks on the youth and academic freedom, and to .
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