Since we reported on the arrest of labour lawyer Remigio Saladero on October 23, 2008, the Philippine authorities have issued arrest warrants for 71 other labour and human rights activists.

They are being accused of murder and attempted murder for allegedly taking up arms against the government and attacking police forces in an ambush in Mindoro province in March 2006. The accusations are based on a statement of one witness whose testimony is highly questionable and no investigation has taken place. Six activists have already been arrested and the others may be seized by the military police at any moment.

Among the activists pursued by the military and charged by the prosecutor in the Mindoro case are at least 15 labour leaders and organisers who have been working for years in the Philippine export processing zones (see the list below). The accused include activists, organisers and leaders from a variety of trade unions and labour organisations, including the Workers' Assistance Center in Cavite, the transportation unions, and the workers' unions at Nestle, Toyota and Honda.

The draconian measures of the Philippine government seem specifically designed to cripple the Philippine labour movement by making union organising even more difficult and prohibiting strikes. In recent years, the government of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has come under intense international and domestic criticism for hundreds of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances of leftist activists, journalists, lawyers and clergy by members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police. In response to the criticism, the number of such killings dropped, but convictions of perpetrators for serious crimes of this type remain negligible. Local activists have also expressed concern that the continuing harassment and arrests of activists on trumped-up charges shows that the government is merely changing its tactics. Their fears were confirmed in a recent statement by the chairperson of the Philippine Commission on Human Rights, Leila de Lima. Those who are charged fit perfectly the profile of the usual victims of extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances, de Lima told representatives of a broad coalition of workers unions, church groups, students, and lawyers groups who are campaigning for the release of Atty. Remigio Saladero Jr.

Employers Confederation Blocks ILO Investigation

The International Labour Organisation, in response to a complaint filed by a Philippine labour organisation two years ago, requested that the Philippine government allow it to send in a high-level mission to investigate the killings and harassments of union leaders and members, and other violations of freedom of association in the Philippines. The government has thus far refused. The Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), which includes employers such as Nestle, Toyota, and Honda, is adamantly opposed to the investigation. For years, these companies have been engaged in standoffs with democratically elected unions.

For more information, see also http://labourrightsblog.typepad.com and http://freeattysaladero.wordpress.com/

List of Labour Leaders Charged by Philippine Government in the Mindoro Murder Case

1. Romeo Legaspi (Chairperson, PAMANTIK-KMU; National President, Organized Labour Association in Line Industries and Agriculture (OLALIA-KMU); President, Nagkakaisang Lakas ng Manggagawa sa Honda ( NLMH- OLALIA);Chairperson, Anakpawis-Timog Katagalugan);

2. Rolando Mingo (President, Southern Tagalog Region Transport Sector Organization, (STARTER);Vice President, Pinagkaisang Lakas ng Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (PISTON);

3. Emmanuel Dionida, (Executive Director, Labour Education Advocacy Development Research Services Inc.);

4. Nestor San Jose (Rizal Provincial Coordinator, Anakpawis; Coordinator, Makabayang Organisasyon ng Tsuper at Operator sa Rizal (MOTOR) (PISTON);

5. Luz Baculo (Secretary General, Pamantik-KMU; National Council Member, KMU);

6. Berlin Justo (Calamba City coordinator, Bayan Muna; Secretary General, Calamba Federation Tricycle Operators and Drivers Association; Former Baranggay Councilor, Brgy. Palingon, Calamba City);

7. Agaton Bautista (Batangas Provincial Coordinator, Anakpawis; Secretary General, Samahan ng mga Magbubukid sa Batangas (SAMBAT));

8. Samuel Dizon (Coordinator, Samahan Pang-transportasyong Rumuruta sa Kalakhang Probinsya ng Laguna (SPARKPLAG) Piston);

9. Lucio Amarante (Staff, Transport Organizer, STARTER-PISTON);

10. Henry Halawig (Paralegal staff, Banzuela Law Office; Former Board of Directors, OLALIA-KMU);

11. Arnie Seminiano (Member, Ilaw at Buklod ng Manggagawa-Kilusang Mayo Uno (IBM-KMU);

12. Garizaldy Constantino (Campaign Officer, Anakpawis Partylist; Former Campaign Officer, Kilusang Mayo Uno Labour Leader, Nestle Union);

13. Romeo Sevilla (Member, Ilaw at Buklod ng Manggaga-Kilusang Mayo Uno (IBM-KMU));

14. Emmanuel Asuncion (Board Member- Workers Assistance Center);

15. Remigio Saladero (General Counsel-KMU; Pro-Labour Legal Assistance Center)