(We yield this space to the statement of the National Union of People’s Lawyers – Panay due to its timeliness. – Ed.)
THE RECENT acts of surveillance and harassment perpetrated by the Philippine National Police against progressive organizations distributing aid to Iloilo City’s urban poor communities deserve the strongest condemnation.
On April 15, police officers went to Barangay San Juan, Molo and questioned the residents about the source of food donations their community had received. Upon confirming that these came from Bayan Muna, the PNP discouraged the residents from consuming food brought by the said party-list and gave instructions not to allow outsiders into the barangay, even if only to give such donations.
There are reports of similar instructions given by the PNP to at least two other barangays also in Molo.
Later that same day, members of Tulong Kabataan – a volunteer network of various youth groups, including Kabataan Party-list – were subjected to surveillance by PNP personnel as they were handing out food to the residents of Barangay San Juan.
These incidents are alarming to say the least, although not entirely unprecedented. Bayan Muna, Kabataan Party-list, and other progressive organizations are no strangers to surveillance, harassment, and red-baiting from security forces. But in the context of a pandemic and the resulting hardships faced by marginalized sectors, the PNP’s actions were downright deplorable.
Even as numerous NGOs and private individuals respond to the call of Mayor Jerry Treñas to help address the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, the PNP here – rather than supporting the private sector’s efforts to deliver aid to those in need – seems more interested and preoccupied with monitoring activists and dissuading people from accepting help.
The PNP’s actions in Iloilo City, taken together with numerous reports of abuse committed by its personnel as they enforce community lockdowns in various parts of the country, all show a distorted understanding of its role during a public health emergency.
Instead of assisting and acting with sympathy towards a population beset by privation and uncertainty, the PNP apparently sees itself as little more than a blunt tool used for hammering down obedience, inflicting punishment for perceived infractions and imagined threats, and muzzling criticism no matter how legitimate and warranted.
There is nothing illegal about giving food to the hungry. It is both a civic and a moral duty made imperative not least by the government’s own inadequacies in handling this emergency. In fact, the production and delivery of food and other basic necessities are activities that should not be hampered even during quarantine.
The PNP should immediately cease the surveillance and harassment of civil society groups and private individuals providing assistance to poor communities. The PNP should not make it any harder for these communities to get help. Most importantly, the PNP should realize that the authority it wields during this or any other emergency is always limited, first and foremost, by the law and, ultimately, by the people’s
