ACTIVISTS and progressive groups in Northern Mindanao will greet the third State of the Nation Address (Sona) of President Rodrigo Duterte with mass demonstrations to protest the martial law in Mindanao and the administration's “anti-people” and “anti-poor” policies, in Cagayan de Oro City, on Monday, July 23.
Around 1,000 people are expected to gather at the Magsaysay Park in Divisoria to show the real “Sona” of the people.
The group is set to present the real face and ill-effects of martial law which for them resulted to various human rights abuses.
Vennel Chenfoo of Kabataan Partylist in Northern Mindanao said the military rule in the island resulted to an intensified militarization in the hinterlands, forcing civilians and lumads to flee their homes.
Chenfoo said they would also highlight “forced and fake surrenderers” of alleged members of the New People’s Army (NPA).
The group would also reveal the worsening human rights violations allegedly perpetrated by state agents including trumped-up charges filed against activists and critics of the government.
“Sa aspeto sa ekonomiya i-apil pud nato ang epekto sa Train Law, Cha-cha and Federalismo nga dili sulbad (When it comes to the aspects of the economy, the Train Law, Cha-Cha and Federalism are not the solutions),” Chenfoo said.
He said the groups would burn a 15-feet effigy of Duterte to end the protest action.
“Ang effigy nag-manifest sa pagka-tuta ni Digong sa US and China ug dagway sa ‘demonyo’ tungod sa mga killings (The effigy reveals how Duterte became the puppet of the US and China and the face of the devil due to the extrajudicial killings),” Chenfoo said.
“Atong ipanawagan nga sobra na ug ihunong na ang martial law (We say we had enough of the martial law and it should be stopped),” he added.