Protesters demand the government provide housing for the poor

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Various organizations, including several military groups, held a protest rally yesterday afternoon at the old Bacolod City Hall to commemorate the Martial Law anniversary. They also acknowledged the 33rd anniversary of the Escalante Massacre.

Among the groups joining the rally were the National Federation of Sugarcane Workers, along with local chapters of Karapatan, Anakbayan, Kabataan Partylist, Bayan, and Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap.

The groups criticized the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.

“A lot of people [had] been tortured, killed, and held against their will during the [President Ferdinand Marcos] administration,” the groups stated. “The situation today is no different under the Duterte administration.”

Protesters called on the government to provide housing for the poor, end job contractualization, and stop the killing of farmers.

They also urged the government to return to the negotiating table with the Communist Party of the Philippines./DGB, WDJ