Militant groups hold Bonifacio Day rallies

Various militant groups held rallies at different areas in Manila yesterday to air their grievances.

The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) and allied groups Bayan Muna, Gabriela, Anakpawis, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, Migrante and League of Filipino Students marched from España Boulevard to Liwasang Bonifacio, where they held a brief program.

Bayan’s group gathered around 2,000 protesters.

After conducting the program, the protesters – carrying a banner with the words “We reject a morally bankrupt government” – marched towards Mendiola Bridge.

They were blocked at Recto Avenue by 250 policemen and three firetrucks. Barbed wire fences closed off the approach to the bridge near the Centro Escolar University.

Manila Police District Station 3 chief Superintendent Romulo Sapitula said they negotiated with leaders to police their own ranks to avoid any clash with the police.

Nearly an hour later, at about 4 p.m., the protesters stopped at the corner of Morayta Avenue to hold a program there. They dispersed at about 5 p.m.

Meanwhile, around 500 protesters belonging to the Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, Sanlakas, Akbayan and the Alliance of Progressive Labor also gathered along Morayta Avenue at around 2 p.m. They held a short program, wherein they denounced the policy of contractualization, claiming it is the root cause of workers’ woes in the country.