Following the recent murders of NDFP Peace consultant Ericson Acosta and peasant organizer Joseph Jimenez, a broad coalition of Filipino compats called for an end to the killings in the Philippines at a packed katips movie screening in Toronto on December 10 at Innis Hall University of Toronto. Malaya Canada organized the film screening in collaboration with Bayan Canada, Anakbayan Canada, Kabayan for Leni, Bicol Community Canada Association (BCCA), Radyo Migrante, Migrants Resource Centre Canada (MRCC), Migrante Ontario and individual members of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association in Toronto (UPAAT), International Coalition of Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRO-Toronto), Canada Philippines Solidarity Organization (CPSO), and members of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines North America (NUJPNA).
The group also demands that the Philippine government delist NDFP Consultant Louie Jalandoni, who has been designated a terrorist by the government. The Philippine Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) designated former chairperson of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Peace Negotiating Panel Luis “Louie” Jalandoni as a “terrorist” on May 25th. Five others were named in ATC Resolution No. 31, branding them “terrorists” based on so-called confidential “verified information” and fabricated murder charges.
For many decades, Louie Jalandoni, a former Catholic priest who later became a prominent figure in the peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (or GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, has been one of the leading voices of the Philippine national democratic movement. Despite coming from a wealthy family, his work as a priest in Negros exposed him to the daily struggles of peasants and workers, prompting him to join the revolutionary movement. He was a founding member of the Christians for National Liberation (CNL).
As chairperson of the NDFP Peace Negotiating Panel, he has fought for the Filipino people’s demands, complaints, protests, and wishes not only at the negotiating table, but also outside of the formal talks between the two parties. Louie is a man of peace, and he is not a terrorist by any means. He has the highest level of social conscience and cannot be labelled or caricatured in the opposite way. He is still working for peace at the age of 87, hoping to fulfil the Filipino people’s aspirations for national liberation.
Sign the petition to support Louie Jalandoni’s Man of Peace, Not a Terrorist campaign by clicking the link below
As part of the celebrations for Human Rights Day, screenings of the film Katips were also held in a number of other cities across Canada. The screenings began in Edmonton, in the province of Alberta, and concluded in Ottawa and Toronto. Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, and Montreal were among the other cities that hosted film screenings.