ICHRP-TO’s Philippine Election Reporting event
Last Sunday, on Philippine Independence Day, the Toronto chapter of the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) delivered a report back of their International Observer Mission at Saint Luke’s United Church. A panel, including two members of CPSO, discussed their experiences in the Philippines, describing the rampant corruption, voter manipulation and state repression the masses. Afterwards, the community was invited to ask questions, where we discussed the Philippine election and the state of politics in both the homeland and diaspora, and what actions they can take locally.
CPSO also brought to the attention of the community the plight of the Tinang 93, a group of farmers, journalists, and peasant rights advocates in Tarlac, Philippines who were arrested by the Philippine National Police while protesting the continued non-fulfilment of a land claim approved in 1998 by the Department of Agrarian Reform, as well as the pending deportation of 6 year old McKenna Rose and her mother, Evangeline (Vangie) Cayanan, who depend on the Canadian healthcare system. We echoed the calls to stop the attacks and for genuine agrarian reform, and to stop the deportation of McKenna and her mother on humanitarian grounds.
CPSO Toronto stands with the Filipino people in struggle. We stand for the fight for a truly democratic Philippines, where activism is not a crime and the land belongs to the people, not the corporations.
Here are some things you can do!
Educate yourself
You can learn more about the Philippine elections by reading the various Bulletins and the Interim report produced by the IOM since April. These reports detail the various elections-related human rights violations documented by the observers, and describe the situation on the ground in the Philippines throughout the course of the election period. We also encourage you to share these reports with your community, and to organize reading groups to collectively learn about the elections. You can find all of these documents here: https://ichrp.net/iom/
Support the Tinang 93
This past week, 93 land beneficiaries and their advocates were arrested by Philippine National Police in Tinang, Concepcion, Tarlac while protesting the inaction of the government in distributing land to those promised it by the Department of Agrarian Reform. More information can be found in this statement written by Canada-Philippines Solidarity Organization – Toronto: https://cpso.pw/2022/06/hands-off-tinang-farmers/
The Tarlac 93 have since been released, but only on the dime of community organizations which paid for their extortive bail out of pocket. Keep an eye out this week for more information about how to contribute to help support the arrestees.
Keep McKenna Healthy
A Canadian citizen, 6 year old McKenna Rose, will be deported to the Philippines on July 8, 2022, with her mom Evangeline (Vangie) Cayanan. Mckenna needs ongoing healthcare that she won’t be able to get if she is deported. Sign the petition to stop their deportation here: https://www.migrantealberta.ca/stopthedeportation
Keep in Touch
Help us build a broad solidarity movement for human rights in the Philippines, here in Toronto! We share updates about our statements, activities, and campaigns through our newsletter, and on our social media profiles. You can find us on Facebook and Instagram at the handle @ichrptoronto. If you would like to sign up for our mailing list, you can do that here: https://www.facebook.com/ichrp.toronto/app/100265896690345.