Luneta protesters march against dictatorship
Thousands of people who joined protest actions and mass rallies against President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration converged at Luneta on Thursday to warn a possible dictatorship.
Protesters gather along España Street. Photo by Dexter Tilo/THE FOURTH
Following Duterte’s declaration of a ‘National Day of Protest’ on September 21, students and youth groups from different universities vowed to join the Movement Against Tyranny protest at Luneta.
The rallies marked the 45th year since the declaration of Martial Law under Marcos and it condemned any forms of dictatorship in the current administration.
Politicians, celebrities, indigenous groups, students, and members of the working-class marched towards Rizal Park as a sign of protest to condemn Duterte’s style of government, accusing him of exploitations similar to that of late Former President Ferdinand Marcos.
Famous personalities such as Agot Isidro, Juan Miguel Severo, Noel Cabangon, and Mae “Juana Change” Paner, also showed their support in the rally.
“How can people under him [Duterte] believe that it’s okay to kill? I mean, he’s a parent, a father and you don’t ever do that to your children,” said Mae Paner.
“As [the] father of the nation, aren’t we his children? How can the father of a nation tell his own men to kill his children?” she added.
Also on Thursday, Martial Law victims and family members of the people who died from extra-judicial killings (EJK) spoke against the administration on the stage in Luneta.
“Marami na pong inosente ang nadadamay, [kung saan] ang mga mayayaman lamang ang mayroong katarungan (Many innocent lives have been affected whereas only the privileged ones get justice),” said Nanay Emily, the mother of a 16-year-old teen who was allegedly a victim of the war on drugs.
According to one of the hosts of the said movement, an approximate number of 30,000 people participated in the movement where they rang bells in commemoration of the Nationwide Ringing of Bells as called for by the Catholic Bishops of the Philippines which ended the program.
