Yet another protest has been met with police intervention in Manila. This time, it’s a Pride March organized by civil rights groups Bahaghari and Gabriela in Mendiola.
According to independent media outlet AlterMidya, 18 members of the organizing groups along with two drivers have been apprehended and are now at the Manila Police District headquarters along U.N. Avenue.
LOOK: The nabbed protesters remain defiant despite the odds. #FreePride20 pic.twitter.com/AOlfcCd5Yz
— AlterMidya (@altermidya) June 26, 2020
When asked about the violation which warranted the arrest of the Pride march attendees, the police were reportedly mum.
https://www.facebook.com/altermidya/videos/2348398092135248/?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARDMZDqrko5J9e-44VU1jcDPcFwy1v-TqGcJA7UOaYB3UQk4nXx6jxd9FBtNSIYjRujdC3hhRK8SVI7ZYEjIjUHHxe9AiERpuStwx_Vgm5I84H-wBLIp9x5uGCuZDI-IXaujGncqReEUn4z4j3LZl9DR7n_zOXGEcDVsWnpmbIHQDTYt7n4eL4eHTO4P6htLsnZv7B-pApCCpPNpWve_5I7g47P8g_oFUZiiwGtMmkwxveGyjW3za2D7rl0hWubl_7e95r9Zbwz-TzHAT7PuAI_WC95YDBiHaYuBCJ5xhlw-Hhe2XRpP8Rv_XRr4GGDJVLG9INy21YKGV_GYpNbSOe4hLRhSH05lipY&__tn__=-R
Gabriela condemned the arrest saying, “We are enraged over this brazen showcase of police terror and discrimination against LGBT+ activists and allies protesting fascism, tyranny and the looming enactment of the Anti-Terrorism Bill.”
According to the organization, the police even confiscated the keys of the vehicles the participants were riding on and hijacked their vehicles to drive them to the police station. “They even manhandled Chriztina Madlangbayan, who is a legislative staff of Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas, as shown in the live video of the dispersal,” Gabriela said in a statement.
https://www.facebook.com/222523177957687/posts/1367246953485298/
The march, which started around 10 a.m. this morning also called for the junking of the Anti-Terror Bill, which is now in the hands of President Duterte and will lapse into law on July 10 even if the president does nothing.
Earlier this month, a rally protesting the passage of the Anti-Terror Bill at the University of the Philippines Cebu was dispersed by policemen in SWAT uniform.
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Writer: CHRISTIAN SAN JOSE
PHOTOS ALTERMIDYA – PEOPLE’S ALTERNATIVE MEDIA NETWORK
