Police in Concepcion, Tarlac arrested some (93) people on Thursday after a group of activists, cultural workers, and local farmers cultivated a piece of disputed land in Tinang village. | Mark Saludes / LiCAS.news
Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo on Saturday said the rights of the 90 farmers and peasant advocates arrested in Tarlac should be upheld.
In a statement, the outgoing vice president called for a fair resolution to the incident.
“Bagaman tinutukoy pa ang kabuuang detalye, ilang bagay ang malinaw: Mapayapa ang naganap na pagtitipon. Walang ibang layunin ang mga magsasaka kundi ang magbigay ng maayos na pamumuhay sa kanilang mga pamilya. Pumunta roon ang kanilang mga tagasuporta upang makiisa at tumulong,” Robredo said.
“Umaasa kaming igagalang ang kanilang karapatang pantao; itatrato sila bilang kapwa-Pilipinong may dignidad; at magkakaroon ng makatarungang resolusyon ang insidenteng ito sa lalong madaling panahon,” she added.
The protesters were arrested and charged with malicious mischief and illegal assembly after the incident.
The arrested individuals’ cumulative bail amounted to over P3 million.
Youth peasant advocacy group National Network of Agrarian Reform Advocates (NNARA)-Youth said supporting farmers in their struggle for land was not a crime punishable by law.
“That police forces violently arrested artists, campus journalists, and youth peasant advocates for supporting the farmers in Hacienda Tinang shows how anti-farmer our government is,” Melo Cabello, NNARA-Youth national spokesman, said. John Ezekiel J. Hirro