Militants throw rotten veggies, fish in front of Malacañang sa Sugbo

Close to 15 militant groups comprised of farmers and fishermen yesterday hurled rotten vegetables and "tuloy" (a variety of fish) in front of the Malacañang sa Sugbo as part of a four-day protest against the alleged "anti-people policies of the 12th ASEAN Summit."

"Bahala'g gamay ra mi, ang importante nga among napadangat ang among mensahe," Wilbert Dimol, secretary general of the Panaghugpong sa mga Gagmay'ng Mangingisda sa Sugbo, said.

Members of the Presidential Security Group and the Mobile Patrol Division were deployed at the rally site, but obviously weren't threatened of the number of militants present at the Malacañang sa Sugbo.

Dimol accused the World Trade Organization of "soon killing Philippine domestic agriculture and fisheries, these two sectors being poorly subsidized, and are therefore dying sources of food."

Also, militant farmers groups denounced the Bush administration's signing of the 2005 US-ASEAN Enhanced Partnership Agreement with the main objectives of "increasing security and political cooperation, and enhancing trade and investments."

"Its trade liberalization policy has been thoroughly discredited the world over. It has been exposed as an instrument of the US and other monopoly capitalists in their pursuit for super-profits to the detriment of the poor and toiling masses in third-world countries," Nick Abasolo, chairperson of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas-Cebu, said.

Meantime, members of the Kilusang Mangingisda failed to carry out the planned street painting protest against the summit after they were spotted by elements of the Mandaue City Police.

Nearly 10 visual artists from the University of the Philippines would have wanted to depict the demands of marginal fishermen in their paintings. - Ramil V. Ayuman