Dakila, our member from the Philippines, published an active vista statement about the state of the Nation address 2021.
๐๐๐๐๐๐ – ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ฉ๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐: ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ก๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ญ
๐๐ฎ๐น๐ณ ๐ฎ ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฑ
This year marks the last year of the Duterte administration and today, President Duterte will deliver his last State of the Nation Address (SONA). But the last five years seemed to be a never-ending tale of suffering for the Filipino people.
๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ป๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ
We have lived under this administrationโs incompetence. Many are forced into poverty as the prices of basic goods increase while the minimum wage and job opportunities remain lacking. The failed pandemic response has also revealed and amplified the inaccessibility of basic social services such as health and soial welfare programs. Meanwhile, our fisherfolks take the brunt of territorial dispute on our seas as our administration continues to play as a lapdog to colonial powers.
๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ช๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ด๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐ผ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ
Filipinos in social, poltical, and economic margins are further pushed towards the edge by the onslaught of anti-poor, anti-minority, misogynistic, and homophobic policies and statements of this government. Thousands were killed in the sham and failed war on drugs that only targets the poor. Development aggressions have displaced the poor out of their homes and have threatened their livelihoods, while indigenous peoples are displaced out of their ancestral lands due to rampant militarization.
๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ถ๐ผ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
Backed and supported by the President himself, violence has become the default response of the authorities to almost everything. The Drug War campaign was implemented through bloody measures that inspired a culture of hate and distrust. The misogynistic ad homophobic statements of the administration has also inspired gender-based violence. And amid the pandemic when people are already dying due to the virus and hunger, we saw how the members of the police has become so brazen that they use their badges as a license to kill and violate the law.
๐๐ฏ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ง๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ป๐
True to the nature of tyranny, those who dare resist this government are intimidated, threatened, and killed. Amid the pandemic, the tyranny has prioritized the passing of repressive measures that violates freedom of the speech and of the press. Laws were weaponized to shut down and gag media outfits. And the passing of the Anti-Terror Law has legitimized and worsened the already grim state of red-tagging, surveillance, and rights violations to activists, advocates, and ordinary citizens.
All these add up to a massive absurdity that would match a badly-written story full of bloody scenes, difficulties, and with no redemption and relief in sight.
Only this is not fiction — this is the daily lives of Filipinos and this is a story not entertaining to anyone.
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐ถ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ
In this last year of the Duterte government, we call everyone to actively reject this absurdity and to take a stand in reclaiming our story as FIlipino people.
Through empathy and kindness, let us rebuild our innate culture of solidarity.
Through unrelenting creative resistance, let us defend our spaces, push back, and hold oppressors accountable.
And through our political participation in the #Halalan2022, let us elect human rights champions to #NeverAgain have this oppressive and repressive governance.
In reclaiming change, recognize that we are powerful people amidst people in power. Itโs time to take back our story. Our hope for a better normal/future is in our hands. ๐๐ฎ๐ด๐๐ต๐ถ๐ป ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ป๐ด ๐๐๐๐๐ป๐ผ๐ฑ ๐ป๐ฎ ๐ธ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ฎ.
See the statement and their video in the post bellow.
