On the US Embassy Rally Incident
​​​​By UP SESC | September 13, 2016

“To Serve and Protect” - Official Philippine National Police Motto
On the afternoon of the 19th of October, a demonstration was held in front of the United States (US) Embassy, with the assembly calling for an independent foreign affairs policy for the Philippines and for the end of the militarization of the lands of the indigenous people. Members of the assembly were comprised of cultural minorities in the Philippines, as well as other groups of concerned citizens. Tensions rose over the duration of the protest, with rallyists reportedly having vandalized the US Embassy.
The events that followed screamed of police brutality and human rights abuse as members of the police force resorted to violence to control the crowd. Numerous protesters were attacked by the members of the police, with one particular officer resorting to using his vehicle to disperse the crowd. These actions resulted in numerous injuries and unwarranted arrests, and it is only through sheer fortune that no casualties were sustained.
We, the School of Economics Student Council, condemn the acts of police brutality that occurred at yesterday’s demonstration. No level of unrest or tension can ever justify the actions of the police force. Moving forward, we can only hope that a proper and fair investigation is held to look deeper into this matter, and to ensure that those at fault are given their due.
Beyond this, however, we also call for increased vigilance and fearlessness on the parts of everyday citizens to be more aware of these stories of violence and abuse. Incidents like these are rampant in various other areas of the country, and it is worrying that it is only now that they are being brought to light. The cultural minorities and indigenous people that suffer from the militarization of their lands not only face the possibility of losing their lives, but also their livelihood, culture and future as a society and people. The land that they’ve inherited from their ancestors are one of the few remaining aspects of their lives that tie them and their people to the deep history that their community holds in our country, and it is disturbing that elements within our own community work to ensure that their heritage be effectively erased from the land that they once called home.
These violations and atrocities that our cultural minorities face have burdened them for generations and need not continue any further. Through an increased consciousness on these injustices and a fervor in safekeeping the deep history of our country, we may strive towards a nation embedded in its identity and culture, using it to give justice not only to its people today, but to the generations of the marginalized in our history.
Source Links:
http://cnnphilippines.com/…/Militants-police-clash-outside-…
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/…/police-van-rams-protesters-d…
http://www.gmanetwork.com/…/violent-dispersal-of-rally-in-f…​