"We add our voice to the STOP the War coalition's call on Israel to immediately stop the carnage it unleashed upon Lebanon its defenseless people," said APL Secretary-General Josua Mata. "Israel's arrogant stance is not only laying waste to hundreds of innocent lives but also pushing the precarious situation in the Middle East further to the edge."
"The current crisis is not an act of 'self-defense' as Israel and its supporters claim. Rather, it is an Israeli war for domination, a regional war aimed at reshaping the map of contemporary Middle East," Mata said.
"At the core of the Middle East conflict is the unflinching US support for Israel's aggressions," explained Mata. "For vetoing a UN ceasefire resolution and for providing the Israel with the military wherewithal to devastate its neighbors, we hold the US jointly liable for this atrocity," Mata added.
"The region is a powder keg and Israel's actions are needlessly putting Filipinos in the line of fire," Mata said. "We call on the Philippine government to denounce the Israeli action and to take all necessary steps to ensure the continued safety of our OFWs in Lebanon and the Middle East in general," added the labor leader.
The now common storyline that the war was initiated by Hezbolla's July 12 raid across the Israeli border - which led to the capture of 2 Israeli soldiers - fails to emphasize that such action was limited to a military target. Israel's response - a full-scale attack on civilian targets - is hugely disproportionate and stands in total disregard of the Geneva Conventions which prohibits collective punishment, targeting of civilians, destruction of civilian infrastructure and more. It is, in short, a war crime.
Actually, the immediate trigger has its roots in Israel's murderous policy in Gaza and the extraordinarily hypocritical US-led boycott and international sanctions against the Palestinians that started after Hamas democratically won the Palestinian Authority government in January 2006.
More importantly, beyond the immediate trigger, the current crisis is rooted Israel's continued occupation of Palestine and confiscation of land and water sources. Without this conflict, Hezbollah, Hamas and other similar groups would not be in today's news.
Jul 27, 2006
Union joins call for end to Israel actions in Lebanon
Jul 24, 2006
Jobs deficit to bring GMA down
The Alliance of Progressive Labor today joined in mass demonstrations to challenge GMA's version of the State of the Nation Adress, denouncing the Arroyo administration's inability to create jobs.
"With a growing labor force population now at 35.2 million, this administration is still in denial as to just how grave the jobs deficit is," said APL Secretary-General Josua Mata. "Instead of protecting our industries, it is trading them away through the WTO and continued adherence to liberalization and deregulation."
"As a matter of fact, the latest Labor Force Survey of January 2006 revealed that of the country's workforce, 8.1% is unemployed and 21.3% is underemployed," explained Mata. "The underemployed rate is up dramatically from 16.1% a year ago -- workers aren't picky when it comes to jobs, they are stuck with what little jobs there are around!"
"To augment the havoc wreaked by her free trade doctrines, GMA would rather promote industries that have no value-added in terms of national industrialization, such as call-centers and other outsourcing work," added the labor leader, "and job fairs that offer contractual work in which turn-overs are obscenely quick and pay is disgustingly low."
Also from the LF participation survey, it was noted that the agriculture, fishery and forestry sector posted the highest increase in employment at 475 thousand. Employment in this sector grew by 4.2%, from 11.4 million in January 2005 to 11.8 million in January this year.
"It is in this sector that government should focus its efforts. Only in an adequately protected and supported domestic economy can a better future be provided for Filipino workers," said Mata, "instead of driving them out as OFWs and putting them in harm's way."
"But this administration cannot adequately respond to workers' concerns, as evidenced in particular by the NCR wage board decision to grant a measly P25 wage increase," added Mata, "because it is deeply mired in one controversy after another with its very legitimacy continuing to be in doubt."
For the labor leader, the jobs deficit will nto be solved under GMA. "Under an administration whose overriding concern is staying in power, the pressure is there to rely more on big business and capitalists for concessions, instead of upholding the Constitutional clauses on social justice and labor rights."
According to Mata, "GMA has swept these fundamental principles in the highest law of the land under the rug, and seemed to have chosen to rely heavily on her military lapdogs instead to go out and hunt, threaten and kill any ang all who oppose her."
"It is this deadly concoction of violence perpetrated against activists and civilians, the pathetic programs in place attempting jobs creation, and continued pursuit of neoliberal economics that makes the GMA administration stink to high heavens," he added, "and it is past the time to end it!"
Jul 22, 2006
Do Not Trade Away Our Rights: WTO negotiations further eroding workers' welfare
The Philippine government is failing in its target of creating more jobs because its economic policies are misaligned from the interests of the majority of Filipinos. Upon the prodding of neoliberals like GMA who subscribe to the false promises of "free" trade through deregulation and liberalization, the country drastically lowered tariff levels on a whole range of products without careful study of its repercussions.
The effect has been the entry of cheap imported products, which may have had short-term gains for consumers, but had proved poverty-inducing in the end, because as more workers lost their fragile jobs, more families ended up below the poverty line, and now contribute to an already distressed economy hard pressed by political turmoil caused by the very same people eroding further our economy.
The Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL) again calls attention to the dire consequences awaiting the country's economy if the government rushes headlong into the deceptive text of negotiations for the Non-Agricultural Products Market Access (NAMA) agreement from the Doha round of WTO negotiations.
The NAMA covers just about everything that does not fall under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture: from raw materials to manufactured products, minerals, lumber and notably fish and fish products. The demand of the NAMA agreement is for the eventual elimination of tariffs on all these products to allow for the entry of foreign products into the Philippines, to the detriment of workers everywhere, from shoe workers in Marikina to steel workers in Calabarzon, to tuna fisherfolks in General Santos City. For a country that hasn't even industrialized, we cannot afford to abandon our industry lines without a fight! In short, it will put millions of workers out into the streets with an anger which this illegal administration will not be able to contain!
The GATS, on the other hand, centers on services, threatening to open up vital areas, such as education, health and utilities, to the profiteering of dubious multinational corporations out to make a quick profit at the expense of our people. The only reason why these services are being targetted under the GATS is because these are the most lucrative at present. But as in the case of the MWSS privatization, this will not result into an efficient nor cheaper service.
In a country where universal access is a right that hasn''t even been realized, attaching a dollar sign to such services will only further keep them away from the reach of poor households. The GATS wil also effectviely take away control of regulation from government on sensitive areas such as tourism, retail, telecommunications and broadcasting, which are sensitive due to their impact on either our natural resources or our national sovereignty.
The APL demands that these WTO agreements be brought down and that the Philippine government craft policies that will truly pave the way for national industrialization and people-centered development! These agreements are not beneficial to the general public and workers who stand to lose what few jobs are available to us locally. It will only further enrich private entities and their cohorts who are only too willing to sell out Filipino workers for an uncertain and disastrous future.
Jul 17, 2006
Tanggalin ang VAT sa langis at kuryente!
"Trabaho, Tahanan, Edukasyon, Pagkain sa Bawat Mesa." Ito ang tema ng State of the Nation Address ni Gloria noong 2001. Lahat patungkol sa gyera laban sa kahirapan - para sa mga batang Payatas na sina Jomar, Jason at Erwin.
Isa sa apat na komponent ng estratehiya ni Gloria para makamit ang mga layuning ito ay ang pangmatagalang istruktural na reporma sa sektor ng enerhiya (kabilang rito ang langis at kuryente) – para dumami ang investment na siyang lilikha ng maraming trabaho, at mapagaan ang pasang hirap ng masa sa harap ng mataas na presyo ng mga bilihin. Dala ni Gloria ang pangakong ito hanggang sa kanyang SONA ng 2005.
Sa 2003 SONA ni Gloria, binigyan niya ng sariling grado ang kanyang performance sa ipinangako niya noong 2001. Sabi niya ang 100kwh noong 2001 na nagkakahalaga ng P596 noong 2001 ay naging P423 na lang. Hindi rin daw tumaas ang pamasahe mula
Sa totoo lang, wala talagang intensyon si Gloria na ibaba ang presyo ng langis at kuryente. Napilitan lang siyang ibaba ang presyo ng kuryente dahil sa malakas na protesta natin laban sa PPA at sa P30-B iniutos na refund ng Korte Suprema sa Meralco. Ni wala siyang magawa para pigilin ang pagtaas ng presyo ng gasolina kundi'y gawin lang itong hulugan. Hindi pa nagkasya sa pagpapahirap sa masa, pinatawan pa ito ng 12% na VAT!
Dahil sa VAT, tumaas ng halos P3 kada litro ng produktong petrolyo at halos P1 naman kada kilowatthour sa kuryente. Noong March 2001, ang presyo ng diesel ay P18 lang, ngayon ito ay umaabot na sa P37 kada litro at posible pang madagdagan ng P8 kada litro hanggang Setyembre!
Sa halip na madagdagan ang pangmatrikula ni Jomar, Jayson at Erwin, napunta lang ito sa itinaas na presyo ng mga bilihin. Sa halip pagkain na sa mesa, inagaw pa ito sa kanila ni Gloria dahil sa VAT. Sa halip na madagdagdagan na badyet sa pamilya, nabawasan pa ito dahil sa mga huwad na pangako at palpak na patakaran ni Gloria.
Ang mga ito ang dahilan kung bakit tuloy ang mga protesta ng masa sa kalsada. Si Gloria ang dahilan ng patuloy na paghihirap ng mamamayan. Makatwiran lamang na hilingin ng mamamayan ang pag-aalis ng VAT sa langis at kuryente. Mayorya ng masa ay naghihirap at nagugutom, kailangan nila ng kagyat na pagkalinga mula sa pamahalaan.
Alin lang sa dalawa ang pwedeng pagpilian ng mamayan sa ilalim ng ganitong sitwasyon: Ang patuloy na maghirap sa loob ng State of the Nation ng panloloko, katiwalian, represyon, at political killings sa ilalim ni Gloria; o tumindig at lumaban para sa isang alternatibang kapalit ng kasalukuyang pamahalaan. - Freedom from Debt Coalition
Jul 7, 2006
Group calls for ouster of gov't officials pushing for Masinloc privatization
Anti-power privatization group Freedom from Debt Coalition today condemned and sought the immediate removal from office of government executives for still giving YNN Pacific Consortium the chance to acquire the efficient and profitable 600-MW Masinloc plant despite the Corporation's repeated failure to deliver its $227.54-million upfront payment for the plant.
"We want the immediate removal of government officials involved in Masinloc privatization deal. It is very obvious that the government still wants to save YNN Pacific in this privatization deal despite obvious financial incapability of the corporation to acquire Masinloc," said FDC Secretary General Milo Tanchuling.
Yesterday, Department of Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, also Chairman of the Board of Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM), said the government is open to giving YNN until July 31 to give its down payment. He retracted later his statement, saying the government will issue termination notice for Masinloc contract on or before 10 July.
"This means that the government only forfeited YNN Pacific's performance bond, but did not terminate the contract. The government, in essence, is giving more time for YNN Pacific to fulfill its commitment in complying with the submission of upfront payment as another 30 days, beginning with the issuance of such termination notice," Tanchuling stressed.
FDC likewise denounced the government's role in negotiating a power supply deal between YNN Pacific and Meralco.
"What is more condemnable is that even before the termination takes effect, the government is also acting as the negotiator of YNN Pacific to enter into a power supply deal with Meralco for Masinloc's power," said Tanchuling, adding that such act is "a clear betrayal of public trust."
Tanchuling explained that there was no power supply contract with a distribution utility attached to the sale of Masinloc before and until the time of the bidding. But after the bid was won and YNN could not get investors' support in the deal, the government through PSALM which bid the plant out has been negotiating with Meralco to seal a power supply deal for Masinloc's power.
The Meralco-Masinloc power deal is reportedly a condition of Malaysian company Ranhill Berhad for it to buy-in YNN Pacific before it delivers the initial payment for Masinloc plant.
"Worse, not only PSALM is involved in this obvious conspiracy, but also the Department of Energy, DoF, and Malacañang," said Tanchuling, adding that DoE Secretary Rafael Lotilla himself blamed the breakdown of negotiations for a power supply deal with Meralco for Masinloc's power for the failure of Masinloc's privatization.
"Those cabinet officials involved in Masinloc sale are alter egos of the President. Therefore, Mrs. Gloria Arroyo is knowledgeable of the deals. In effect, she is tolerating this insidious deal against the people," Tanchuling said.
"Everybody now knows that on the day of the deadline, Presidential chief of staff Mike Defensor said that the Office of the President is studying a possible extension of the deadline on the Masinloc buyer after it received a request from Malaysian Prime Minister Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for the extension in behalf of Ranhill. Why is the President protecting the interest of foreign investors, instead of that of the Filipino people?" asked Tanchuling.
FDC said that should the Meralco-YNN deal becomes successful, higher power rates are in the offing as YNN will recover through the contract its $561-million bid of Masinloc including the 12 percent interest it will have to pay for the balance after the $227-million initial payment is made and the $14-million performance bond that was forfeited. ###
Freedom from Debt Coalition
Reference: Milo Tanchuling, FDC Secretary General @ +63-2-9211985
Jul 6, 2006
Government told to stop pushing for Masinloc privatization, entertaining YNN
Release: 2006-07-06
An anti-power privatization group reiterated its call today for the government to stop privatization deals with Masinloc and the privatization of Napocor altogether, in reaction to reports that the government is still giving time for YNN Pacific to make its initial payments for the 600-MW power plant.
The Freedom from Debt Coalition said that the government must realize by now that the privatization of NPC assets has failed as evidenced by the unsuccessful sale of Masinloc.
"It is despicable that the government has to resort to some sort of conspiracy and even going to the extent of betraying public trust just to save the privatization of Masinloc and, in effect, the YNN Pacific," said FDC Secretary General Milo Tanchuling.
The group criticized government's pronouncement made by Department of Finance Secretary Margarito Teves that it is open to giving YNN Corporation until July 31 to deliver the $227-million down payment for Masinloc.
"As the DoF Secretary is the alter ego of the President, his statement also implies that the President is knowledgeable of the deals. In effect, the President tolerates this insidious deal against the people," said Tanchuling.
Tanchuling said that too much time has been given YNN Pacific to make its upfront payment and that its consistent failure to meet the two deadlines is a very clear indication that it cannot pay even less than half of its bid price of $561-million for Masinloc.
Tanchuling pointed out that the conspiracy of government officials, PSALM, NPC, and even the Department of Energy, just to accommodate YNN Pacific and its new would-be majority owner Ranhill Berhad, only correspond their removal from office.
FDC said that contrary to PSALM's earlier pronouncement that there would be no supply contracts attached to the sale of NPC generation assets, its actions, after the bid was won by YNN Pacific, speak otherwise.
FDC emphasized that no less than DoE Secretary Rafael Lotilla admitted that there has been negotiations going on between the government and Meralco for a power supply deal with the distribution utility and Masinloc plant. It was also reported that PSALM Vice President Noni Bernardo represented PSALM in these negotiations.
"Ironically, it appears that the government is negotiating for YNN Pacific. The statement of Secretary Teves also shows that the government again is giving YNN Pacific until July 31 this year anticipating that a supply deal will with Meralco will be forged," Tanchuling noted.
Ranhill Berhad, the Malaysian firm that would infuse additional equity to YNN Pacific, has until
Since the past months, government through PSALM and NPC has been negotiating with Meralco to seal a power supply contract with YNN Pacific for Masinloc's power. ###
Jul 4, 2006
PNU Students held vigil protest against Prexy Barbo
According to Joseph Invierno, currently the chairperson of Samahang Demokratiko ng Kabataan (SDK)- PNU Chapter, the selection process, which was done through straw voting, did not even manifest that PNU President-elect Lutgardo Barbo was included in the three finalists.
"Atty. Barbo, as per the results of the selection process, only placed number five. This means that he is not qualified to pass through the final 3 selection," Invierno said.
He added that Barbo, in the technical aspect of the selection, is also not qualified because he did not incur a master's and doctoral degree, and neither became an instructor nor a professor in his lifetime.
"This means that he lacks all the needed background in the academe, not to mention the fact that he made politics his profession. He served three terms as an Eastern Samar governor and served as a secretary-general of the Senate during deposed president Joseph Estrada's impeachment period. We believe that neither of these political backgrounds would be healthy for the entire PNU community," Invierno said.
It will be remembered that PNU students have been posing calls such as "No to politics, Yes to Merits!" since June 27, when Atty. Barbo was declared as PNU President. SDK, meanwhile, also challenged the PNU Board of Regents to consider themselves accountable for what took place in the selection process.
Students from neighboring universities such as the Technological University of the Philippines, University of the Philippines-Manila, Adamson University, Arellano University and Far Eastern University joined the vigil and expressed solidarity towards the said struggle.
"We will be continually calling for the immediate replacement of Barbo with someone who is dignified on his/her thorough experience in the academe and serving the interests of the studentry. We don't need a politician in PNU, just a true servant of the academic community," Invierno concluded.
- Samahang Demokratiko ng Kabataan(SDK)
Jul 3, 2006
Government urged to reverse privatization program
The Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) said the decision of Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) to finally forfeit the $14 million performance bond of YNN consortium "was actually long overdue."
"This government has to stop this privatization effort. It cannot even sell one of its best plants without under-the-table arrangements, without unethical acts. Even PSALM itself admits that the government continues to earn from the income generated by Masinloc these days. Then why should it sell one of its most profitable plants and make the consumers suffer in the process?" asked FDC vice president Wilson Fortaleza.
"What PSALM and this government have only attracted so far in the privatization of the power industry are dubious investors and not really companies or participants experienced to run the power industry and are those that can make a better industry where service and not profit is of utmost importance," stressed Fortaleza.
The government had already given two extensions ? March and June 30, 2006 ? for YNN to deliver its initial payment for Masinloc. This, according to FDC, is already too much leeway for the corporation, yet it still failed to make it.
"This only proves that YNN has no financial capability at all to acquire Masinloc power plant," Fortaleza said.
Ranhill Berhad, the would-be partner in YNN consortium, wants a power sales agreement between YNN and Meralco. It reportedly sets the power supply contract with Meralco as a condition for the release of its first tranche for its acquisition of YNN. Fortaleza lamented that such deal will be at the expense of the consumers.
"This will in effect bind the consumers to a new power contract which could lead to higher power rates in the offing as YNN will recover through the contract its $561-million bid of Masinloc including the 12 percent interest it will have to pay for the balance after the $227-million initial payment is made.
Also to be recovered is the $14-million performance bond that was forfeited. This is a clear manifestation of the obvious interest of Berhad in coming in as a partner of YNN. It sees buying Masinloc as an investment opportunity. As expected, Berhad has not shown any indication of interest of running the plant as it has no track record in the power industry," Fortaleza said.