Mariin naming kinokondena ang pinal na desisyon ng COMELEC na nagbasura sa paglahok ng Migrante Sectoral Partylist sa halalang 2010. Ito ay tuwirang pagkitil sa sagradong karapatang marinig sa konggreso ang mga lehitimong hinaing ng sektor OFW.
Ang hindi makatarungan hakbang na ito ng COMELEC sa pangunguna ni Chairman Jose Melo ay nagpapatunay lamang na ang komisyong nabanggit ay pugad ng mga asong-ulol na minamaniobra ni GMA. Tuluyan nang sinelyuhan ang haka‐haka at pagdududa ng bayan na ang COMELEC ay isang malawak at organisdadong makinarya ng pandaraya at pagmamanipula kung saan sunud‐sunuran lamang ito sa dikta at kapritso Malakanyang!
Ang iskemang ito ay ganti ng mga buwitre at magnanakaw sa pamahalaan sapagkat ang Migrante International ay patuloy na naninidigan laban sa pagsasamantala, kurapsiyon, pandaraya, inhustisya, paglabag sa karapatang‐pantao at sa pangunguna nito sa pagbatikos sa pamahalaang nagpapabaya sa interes ng sektor na aming kinabibilangan.
Si Chairman Jose Melo, sampu ng kanyang mga kasapakat ay walang puwang para pamunuan ang institusyong dapat sana’y kanlungan ng Demokrasya at Kalayaan. Ang COMELEC na matagal ng sadlak sa katiwalian at kontrobersiya ay lalo pang naluom sa hindi mawaring kahihiyan sapagkat nagmistula itong berdugo ng putulin nila ang natitirang hibla na magbibigay daan para magkaroon ng lehitimong reperesentasyon ang mga Migranteng Pilipino sa kongreso.
Nararapat lamang na magbitiw at patalsikin sa puwesto si Chairman Jose Melo at mga kasabwat nito sapagkat sila ay imahe ng napipintong malawakang pandaraya at pagmanipula sa resulta ng halalan 2010.
(SGD.) John Torres
Spokesperson
Migrante Sectoral Partylist
Eastern Region, KSA
Email: john_torresrt@yahoo.com.ph
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Comelec as a tool for political repression
22 November 2009
STATEMENT
With growing number of disqualified progressive party-lists:
Migrante denounces Comelec as a tool for political repression,
asks Supreme Court to act quickly
Migrante Party-list today declared that it would join ACT and Courage Party-lists in fighting against the Commission on Elections’ apparent move to block the participation of progressive party-lists in the 2010 elections, saying that the poll body had exposed itself as a tool for political repression and electoral fraud.
“First, it denied representation to millions of Overseas Filipino Workers. Now it has denied representation as well to hundreds of thousands of teachers and government employees. Comelec chairman Jose Melo and the other commissioners must be dismissed and held accountable for their bastardization of the Party-list System.
“The Filipino people cannot trust the Comelec to hold clean and honest elections, when it has already shown an obvious bias against party-list groups known to be critical of the administration,” said Connie Bragas-Regalado, Migrante Party-list chairperson.
According to Regalado, the poll body has resorted to twisting the law and outright lying in order to justify the de-listing of Migrante and disqualification of ACT and Courage.
“For instance, it carried out a verification of Courage chapters but came out with an incorrect report that failed to recognize existing chapters and attributed to them non-existing ones. In Migrante’s case, it equated non-participation in the elections to failure to obtain 2% of total party-list votes.
On the other hand, did the Comelec ever prove the constituency of administration-backed party-list groups such as Jovito Palparan’s Bantay and Lourdes Arroyo’s Ang Kasangga? Until now, it is not even clear what marginalized sector they represent,” she said.
The migrant leader is confident that “the Comelec’s flawed decisions will not fool the Supreme Court,” but expressed concern over the nearing December 1 deadline for filing of manifestations of intent to run.
“It is imperative that the court act quickly on the matter. Will it allow the fate of marginalized OFWs, teachers, and government employees to rest on a handful of politically motivated commissioners? Will it allow the Party-list System to be fully bastardized?” she added.
Migrante last November 20 asked the Supreme Court for a Temporary Restraining Order on their de-listing, while ACT and Courage are set to file their petitions to the high court next week.###
Reference:
Connie Bragas-Regalado, Chairperson, 09279268984
Ailyn Abdula, Media Liaison Officer, 09212708994
STATEMENT
With growing number of disqualified progressive party-lists:
Migrante denounces Comelec as a tool for political repression,
asks Supreme Court to act quickly
Migrante Party-list today declared that it would join ACT and Courage Party-lists in fighting against the Commission on Elections’ apparent move to block the participation of progressive party-lists in the 2010 elections, saying that the poll body had exposed itself as a tool for political repression and electoral fraud.“First, it denied representation to millions of Overseas Filipino Workers. Now it has denied representation as well to hundreds of thousands of teachers and government employees. Comelec chairman Jose Melo and the other commissioners must be dismissed and held accountable for their bastardization of the Party-list System.
“The Filipino people cannot trust the Comelec to hold clean and honest elections, when it has already shown an obvious bias against party-list groups known to be critical of the administration,” said Connie Bragas-Regalado, Migrante Party-list chairperson.
According to Regalado, the poll body has resorted to twisting the law and outright lying in order to justify the de-listing of Migrante and disqualification of ACT and Courage.
“For instance, it carried out a verification of Courage chapters but came out with an incorrect report that failed to recognize existing chapters and attributed to them non-existing ones. In Migrante’s case, it equated non-participation in the elections to failure to obtain 2% of total party-list votes.
On the other hand, did the Comelec ever prove the constituency of administration-backed party-list groups such as Jovito Palparan’s Bantay and Lourdes Arroyo’s Ang Kasangga? Until now, it is not even clear what marginalized sector they represent,” she said.
The migrant leader is confident that “the Comelec’s flawed decisions will not fool the Supreme Court,” but expressed concern over the nearing December 1 deadline for filing of manifestations of intent to run.
“It is imperative that the court act quickly on the matter. Will it allow the fate of marginalized OFWs, teachers, and government employees to rest on a handful of politically motivated commissioners? Will it allow the Party-list System to be fully bastardized?” she added.Migrante last November 20 asked the Supreme Court for a Temporary Restraining Order on their de-listing, while ACT and Courage are set to file their petitions to the high court next week.###
Reference:
Connie Bragas-Regalado, Chairperson, 09279268984
Ailyn Abdula, Media Liaison Officer, 09212708994
Friday, November 20, 2009
Migrante calls for Melo’s dismissal
20 November 2009
STATEMENT
For ‘killing’ OFWs’ dream of having a say in government:
Migrante calls for Melo’s dismissal and seeks a TRO from the Supreme Court
See you in court.
This was the message of Migrante Sectoral Party today as it stormed anew the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) office in Intramuros, Manila to highlight overseas Filipinos and families’ rage after the poll body affirmed its earlier decision disqualifying Migrante from the 2010
party-list race.
On the first day of the filing of certificates of candidacy and of party-lists’ manifestations of intent to participate in the 2010 elections, Migrante members carried a mock coffin that symbolizes the poll body’s ‘killing’ of the Filipino migrants and their families’ dream of congressional representation through the party-list system.
“It’s official. The Arroyo regime, through the COMELEC, has fastened the last nail in the coffin of Overseas Filipino Workers and their families’ dream of finally having genuine representation in government,” said Migrante Sectoral Party Chairperson Connie Bragas-Regalado.
“We are demanding to have Chairman Jose Melo and the rest of the Commissioners dismissed for disenfranchising millions of OFWs,” she added.
The group also declared that they are set to confront the COMELEC ruling head on, and later trooped to the Supreme Court to seek a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the COMELEC ruling.
“OFWs and their families deserve to have a say in government and are determined to fulfill this long sought dream. We are prepared to make sure that our call for genuine representation will reverberate not only in the Philippines but throughout the world,” Regalado said, as she revealed that protest actions are already underway in various Migrante chapters worldwide.
She warned that OFWs are even contemplating withholding their hard-earned remittances for a day in protest of Migrante’s delisting.
In its petition to the Supreme Court, Migrante said that COMELEC’s decision upholding Migrante’s de-listing is illegal and violates the Party-list System Act.
The COMELEC, in its November 17 decision, said that due process was accorded Migrante and 25 other de-listed party-lists by allowing them to file verified oppositions. It also cited a 2007 Supreme Court minute resolution of Minero vs. COMELEC, wherein failure to participate in the elections was equated with failure to get 2% of total party-list votes.
But according to Julius Matibag, Migrante’s legal counsel, “The Party-list System Act is clear and categorical that that the registration of a party-list may be removed or cancelled only after due process and hearing, and not before. Before COMELEC gave Migrante the opportunity to be heard, COMELEC has already cancelled its registration.”
Matibag also said that the Minero vs. COMELEC is “incorrect.” “Migrante will ask the Supreme Court for a proper interpretation of the Party-list System Act, and stand by our position that failure to participate in the elections is not equivalent to failure to get 2% of total party-list votes. How can you lose an election if you did not join it in the first place?”
Migrante’s legal counsel is positive that the Supreme Court will act favorably on Migrante’s petition. “The high court has proven, through its abandonment of the first-party rule earlier this year, that any doubt on the interpretation of the Party-List System Act must be resolved in favor of recognizing the spirit and wisdom of the said law, which is to give representation the marginalized, such as OFWs,” Matibag said.
He assailed that it took 22 days for the COMELEC to resolve Migrante’s verified opposition, and that it was delivered to the group only on November 19. “Such a delay has greatly limited the period available to the Supreme Court to resolve Migrante’s application for a TRO before the December 1 deadline of the filing of the manifestation of the intent to participate in the elections,” said Matibag.
Meanwhile, Regalado pointed out that the poll body allowed five party-list groups (Visayas Farmers Party, Sagip Kapwa Foundation Inc., Visayan Association of the Philippines, Pinoy Overseas Party and Barangay Association for National Advancement and Transparency) to participate in the 2004 elections, even if they failed to obtain 2% of the total party-list votes in 1998 and did not participate in the 2001 elections.
Migrante Sectoral Party failed to obtain 2% of the total party-list votes in 1998 and did not participate in the 2007 elections. ###
Reference:
Connie Bragas-Regalado, Chairperson, 09279268984
Ailyn Abdula, Media Officer, 09212708994
STATEMENT
For ‘killing’ OFWs’ dream of having a say in government:
Migrante calls for Melo’s dismissal and seeks a TRO from the Supreme Court
See you in court.
This was the message of Migrante Sectoral Party today as it stormed anew the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) office in Intramuros, Manila to highlight overseas Filipinos and families’ rage after the poll body affirmed its earlier decision disqualifying Migrante from the 2010
party-list race.
On the first day of the filing of certificates of candidacy and of party-lists’ manifestations of intent to participate in the 2010 elections, Migrante members carried a mock coffin that symbolizes the poll body’s ‘killing’ of the Filipino migrants and their families’ dream of congressional representation through the party-list system.
“It’s official. The Arroyo regime, through the COMELEC, has fastened the last nail in the coffin of Overseas Filipino Workers and their families’ dream of finally having genuine representation in government,” said Migrante Sectoral Party Chairperson Connie Bragas-Regalado.
“We are demanding to have Chairman Jose Melo and the rest of the Commissioners dismissed for disenfranchising millions of OFWs,” she added.
The group also declared that they are set to confront the COMELEC ruling head on, and later trooped to the Supreme Court to seek a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the COMELEC ruling.
“OFWs and their families deserve to have a say in government and are determined to fulfill this long sought dream. We are prepared to make sure that our call for genuine representation will reverberate not only in the Philippines but throughout the world,” Regalado said, as she revealed that protest actions are already underway in various Migrante chapters worldwide.
She warned that OFWs are even contemplating withholding their hard-earned remittances for a day in protest of Migrante’s delisting.
In its petition to the Supreme Court, Migrante said that COMELEC’s decision upholding Migrante’s de-listing is illegal and violates the Party-list System Act.
The COMELEC, in its November 17 decision, said that due process was accorded Migrante and 25 other de-listed party-lists by allowing them to file verified oppositions. It also cited a 2007 Supreme Court minute resolution of Minero vs. COMELEC, wherein failure to participate in the elections was equated with failure to get 2% of total party-list votes.
But according to Julius Matibag, Migrante’s legal counsel, “The Party-list System Act is clear and categorical that that the registration of a party-list may be removed or cancelled only after due process and hearing, and not before. Before COMELEC gave Migrante the opportunity to be heard, COMELEC has already cancelled its registration.”
Matibag also said that the Minero vs. COMELEC is “incorrect.” “Migrante will ask the Supreme Court for a proper interpretation of the Party-list System Act, and stand by our position that failure to participate in the elections is not equivalent to failure to get 2% of total party-list votes. How can you lose an election if you did not join it in the first place?”
Migrante’s legal counsel is positive that the Supreme Court will act favorably on Migrante’s petition. “The high court has proven, through its abandonment of the first-party rule earlier this year, that any doubt on the interpretation of the Party-List System Act must be resolved in favor of recognizing the spirit and wisdom of the said law, which is to give representation the marginalized, such as OFWs,” Matibag said.
He assailed that it took 22 days for the COMELEC to resolve Migrante’s verified opposition, and that it was delivered to the group only on November 19. “Such a delay has greatly limited the period available to the Supreme Court to resolve Migrante’s application for a TRO before the December 1 deadline of the filing of the manifestation of the intent to participate in the elections,” said Matibag.
Meanwhile, Regalado pointed out that the poll body allowed five party-list groups (Visayas Farmers Party, Sagip Kapwa Foundation Inc., Visayan Association of the Philippines, Pinoy Overseas Party and Barangay Association for National Advancement and Transparency) to participate in the 2004 elections, even if they failed to obtain 2% of the total party-list votes in 1998 and did not participate in the 2001 elections.
Migrante Sectoral Party failed to obtain 2% of the total party-list votes in 1998 and did not participate in the 2007 elections. ###
Reference:
Connie Bragas-Regalado, Chairperson, 09279268984
Ailyn Abdula, Media Officer, 09212708994
Friday, November 13, 2009
Migrante to Comelec:
Respect due process, respect migrant’s representation, release decision now!
12 November 2009
PRESS RELEASE
Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and their families today held a protest action in front of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) office in Intramuros, Manila, to demand that the electoral body immediately release its decision on Migrante Party-list’s petition to remove its name from party-lists disqualified to run in the 2010 elections.
“The Comelec must not keep more than 10 million OFWs waiting. It has now said that it will print and release 100,000 ballots for its voter’s education campaign. We deserve to know: is our name in these ballots?” demanded Connie Bragas-Regalado, chairperson of Migrante Party-list.
Denied of due process before the Comelec En Banc released its resolution to de-list Migrante last October 13, the party-list group said that the electoral body should hold a hearing in order to prove that the de-listing was not “politically motivated.”
“Everyday, Comelec’s silence on the issue angers OFWs all over the world, who has kept sending e-mails and text messages to assert their right to representation. They deserve a chance to be heard, as well as an explanation as to why they have been denied due process for so long,” said Bragas-Regalado.
The protesters hung a giant “Respect Due Process! Respect Migrant Representation!” streamer at Comelec’s gate, to pressure the commissioners to act on its verified opposition, submitted last October 26.
They also insisted that the commissioners, who are meeting in En Banc, face them and directly answer their long-standing questions, “what are their solid grounds for de-listing and why are they not following due process?”
Yesterday, Migrante Party-list held its national convention where its chapters from Metro Manila and several regions resolved to continue the fight for representation and for the rights and welfare of migrant workers and their families.
Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero also expressed solidarity with the group. “Hindi tamang itinutulak papalayo ang sinumang grupo. Dapat hilahing papasok sa larangan ng pakikibaka patungkol sa ating demokrasya sa pamamagitan ng balota,” (No group should be pushed away, but should be encouraged to engage in the struggle for democracy through the ballot) he said in a video message.
Elected as Migrante Party-list’s first three nominees were Bragas-Regalado, Emmanuel Villanueva (secretary general, United Filipinos in Hong Kong), and John Leonard Monterona (coordinator, Migrante International-Middle East), all current or former OFWs.
“Our gathering is a political message: We are worth more than the dollars we send home. We are worth being listened to,” said Bragas-Regalado. ###
12 November 2009
PRESS RELEASE
Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and their families today held a protest action in front of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) office in Intramuros, Manila, to demand that the electoral body immediately release its decision on Migrante Party-list’s petition to remove its name from party-lists disqualified to run in the 2010 elections.
“The Comelec must not keep more than 10 million OFWs waiting. It has now said that it will print and release 100,000 ballots for its voter’s education campaign. We deserve to know: is our name in these ballots?” demanded Connie Bragas-Regalado, chairperson of Migrante Party-list.
Denied of due process before the Comelec En Banc released its resolution to de-list Migrante last October 13, the party-list group said that the electoral body should hold a hearing in order to prove that the de-listing was not “politically motivated.”
“Everyday, Comelec’s silence on the issue angers OFWs all over the world, who has kept sending e-mails and text messages to assert their right to representation. They deserve a chance to be heard, as well as an explanation as to why they have been denied due process for so long,” said Bragas-Regalado.
The protesters hung a giant “Respect Due Process! Respect Migrant Representation!” streamer at Comelec’s gate, to pressure the commissioners to act on its verified opposition, submitted last October 26.
They also insisted that the commissioners, who are meeting in En Banc, face them and directly answer their long-standing questions, “what are their solid grounds for de-listing and why are they not following due process?”
Yesterday, Migrante Party-list held its national convention where its chapters from Metro Manila and several regions resolved to continue the fight for representation and for the rights and welfare of migrant workers and their families.
Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero also expressed solidarity with the group. “Hindi tamang itinutulak papalayo ang sinumang grupo. Dapat hilahing papasok sa larangan ng pakikibaka patungkol sa ating demokrasya sa pamamagitan ng balota,” (No group should be pushed away, but should be encouraged to engage in the struggle for democracy through the ballot) he said in a video message.
Elected as Migrante Party-list’s first three nominees were Bragas-Regalado, Emmanuel Villanueva (secretary general, United Filipinos in Hong Kong), and John Leonard Monterona (coordinator, Migrante International-Middle East), all current or former OFWs.
“Our gathering is a political message: We are worth more than the dollars we send home. We are worth being listened to,” said Bragas-Regalado. ###
Monday, November 9, 2009
Let Migrante Run
09 November 2009
PRESS RELEASE:
“Let Migrante Run,” running women migrants say
1-week action against denial of OFW party-list representation kicks off with protest jog
Around 150 women from an Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) community in Bagong Barrio, Caloocan City today held a protest jog against the Arroyo government’s continuing refusal to give migrants a chance for representation under the party-list system.
Carrying streamers that read, “Let Migrante Run,” former female OFWs and wives and mothers of OFWs held an early morning protest jog to symbolize their protest against the Commission on Elections’ de-listing of Migrante Party-list from the 2010 elections.
From the Brgy. 150 covered court, the women ran two kilometers and broke through a finish line designed with paper masks of Comelec commissioners and President Arroyo.
“This run symbolizes how OFWs will not be stopped by a malicious move by the government to further marginalize us. We who have toiled abroad and whose husbands and children work like slaves under foreign employers have fought long and hard for our rights and welfare. We refuse to simply stand by and allow this attack on our organized effort to gain a much needed and much deserved voice in Congress,” said Gina Gaborni, deputy secretary general of Migrante International.
Migrante Party-list has a pending opposition to the Comelec’s En Banc Resolution last October 13, 2009 disqualifying Migrante and 25 other party-list organizations, saying that it was in violation of the Party-list System Act and “politically motivated” in order to silence party-lists critical of the administration.
Last week, it launched an electronic barrage through text and e-mail in order to pressure Comelec commissioners to remove Migrante’s de-listing. It was participated by OFW communities worldwide.
The protest jog in Caloocan City is the first in a series of migrants’ protest actions scheduled this week, which will culminate in a rally in front of the Comelec on November 12.
“We are just warming up in our protest. We vow to see this struggle to the finish line, which is the day when we are finally given the chance to be truly represented and heard, not just shamelessly used by the government for the remittances that we and our families send home,” said Gaborni.###
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Patakbuhin ang Migrante,” sigaw ng tumatakbong kababaihang migrante
Protest jog, simula ng 1-linggong aksiyon laban sa pagtanggal ng representasyon ng OFW sa party-list
Mahigit-kumulang 150 kababaihan mula sa isang komunidad ng mga Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) sa Caloocan City ang nagsagawa ng protest job laban sa umano’y patuloy na pagtanggi ng gobyernong Arroyo na bigyan ng tsansa ang OFWs na magkaroon ng representasyon sa ilalim ng sistemang party-list.
Bitbit ang mga streamer na nakalagay ang “Patakbuhin ang Migrante,” nag-jogging noong madaling araw ang kababaihang dating mga OFW o di kaya’y asawa’t magulang ng mga OFW. Nilalabanan nila ang de-listing ng Commission on Elections sa Migrante Party-list mula sa 2010 halalan.
Mula sa covered court ng Brgy. 150, tumakbo ng dalawang kilometro ang kababaihan at giniba ang isang finish line na may mga maskarang papel ng mga komisyuner ng Comelec at ni Pangulong Arroyo.
“Ipinapakita ng aming pagtakbo na hindi kami magpapapigil sa malisyosong hakbang ng gobyerno na patuloy kaming imarginalisa. Matagal na naming ipinaglalaban ang aming mga karapatan, kami na nagtrabaho sa abroad at na ang mga asawa at anak ay nagpapakahirap pa rin doon. Hindi namin hahayaan ang atakeng ito sa aming organisadong tangka na sa wakas ay marinig ang boses sa Kongreso,” sabi ni Gina Gaborni, deputy secretary general ng Migrante International.
Tinututulan ng Migrante Party-list ang En Banc Resolution ng Comelec noong Oktubre 13, 2009 sa dinidiskwalipika ang Migrante at 25 pang party-lists. Umano’y labag ang nasabing resolusyon sa Party-list System Act at isang hakbang para patahimikin ang mga organisasyong kritikal sa administrasyon.
Noong nakaraang linggo, naglunsad ang mga OFW mula sa iba’t ibang bansa ng electronic barrage sa pamamagitan ng text at e-mail para udyukan ang Comelec na alisin ang de-listing ng Migrante.
Ang protest jog sa Caloocan City ang una sa serye ng mga kilos-protesta ngayong linggo, na lulundo sa isang rali sa harap ng Comelec sa Nobyembre 12.
“Nagsisimula pa lamang uminit ang aming protesta. Tatapusin namin ang labang ito hanggang sa huli, o ang araw na sa wakas ay mabibigyan kami ng tsansa na mapakinggan at magkaroon ng tunay na kinatawan, at hindi na lamang ginagamit ng gobyerno para sa remittances na pinapadala ng aming mga pamilya,” sabi ni Gaborni.###
Reference:
Gina Gaborni,
Deputy Secretary General, 09074698126
Ailyn Abdula,
Media Officer, 09212708994
PRESS RELEASE:
“Let Migrante Run,” running women migrants say
1-week action against denial of OFW party-list representation kicks off with protest jog
Around 150 women from an Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) community in Bagong Barrio, Caloocan City today held a protest jog against the Arroyo government’s continuing refusal to give migrants a chance for representation under the party-list system.
Carrying streamers that read, “Let Migrante Run,” former female OFWs and wives and mothers of OFWs held an early morning protest jog to symbolize their protest against the Commission on Elections’ de-listing of Migrante Party-list from the 2010 elections.
From the Brgy. 150 covered court, the women ran two kilometers and broke through a finish line designed with paper masks of Comelec commissioners and President Arroyo.
“This run symbolizes how OFWs will not be stopped by a malicious move by the government to further marginalize us. We who have toiled abroad and whose husbands and children work like slaves under foreign employers have fought long and hard for our rights and welfare. We refuse to simply stand by and allow this attack on our organized effort to gain a much needed and much deserved voice in Congress,” said Gina Gaborni, deputy secretary general of Migrante International.
Migrante Party-list has a pending opposition to the Comelec’s En Banc Resolution last October 13, 2009 disqualifying Migrante and 25 other party-list organizations, saying that it was in violation of the Party-list System Act and “politically motivated” in order to silence party-lists critical of the administration.
Last week, it launched an electronic barrage through text and e-mail in order to pressure Comelec commissioners to remove Migrante’s de-listing. It was participated by OFW communities worldwide.
The protest jog in Caloocan City is the first in a series of migrants’ protest actions scheduled this week, which will culminate in a rally in front of the Comelec on November 12.
“We are just warming up in our protest. We vow to see this struggle to the finish line, which is the day when we are finally given the chance to be truly represented and heard, not just shamelessly used by the government for the remittances that we and our families send home,” said Gaborni.###
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Patakbuhin ang Migrante,” sigaw ng tumatakbong kababaihang migrante
Protest jog, simula ng 1-linggong aksiyon laban sa pagtanggal ng representasyon ng OFW sa party-list
Mahigit-kumulang 150 kababaihan mula sa isang komunidad ng mga Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) sa Caloocan City ang nagsagawa ng protest job laban sa umano’y patuloy na pagtanggi ng gobyernong Arroyo na bigyan ng tsansa ang OFWs na magkaroon ng representasyon sa ilalim ng sistemang party-list.
Bitbit ang mga streamer na nakalagay ang “Patakbuhin ang Migrante,” nag-jogging noong madaling araw ang kababaihang dating mga OFW o di kaya’y asawa’t magulang ng mga OFW. Nilalabanan nila ang de-listing ng Commission on Elections sa Migrante Party-list mula sa 2010 halalan.
Mula sa covered court ng Brgy. 150, tumakbo ng dalawang kilometro ang kababaihan at giniba ang isang finish line na may mga maskarang papel ng mga komisyuner ng Comelec at ni Pangulong Arroyo.
“Ipinapakita ng aming pagtakbo na hindi kami magpapapigil sa malisyosong hakbang ng gobyerno na patuloy kaming imarginalisa. Matagal na naming ipinaglalaban ang aming mga karapatan, kami na nagtrabaho sa abroad at na ang mga asawa at anak ay nagpapakahirap pa rin doon. Hindi namin hahayaan ang atakeng ito sa aming organisadong tangka na sa wakas ay marinig ang boses sa Kongreso,” sabi ni Gina Gaborni, deputy secretary general ng Migrante International.
Tinututulan ng Migrante Party-list ang En Banc Resolution ng Comelec noong Oktubre 13, 2009 sa dinidiskwalipika ang Migrante at 25 pang party-lists. Umano’y labag ang nasabing resolusyon sa Party-list System Act at isang hakbang para patahimikin ang mga organisasyong kritikal sa administrasyon.
Noong nakaraang linggo, naglunsad ang mga OFW mula sa iba’t ibang bansa ng electronic barrage sa pamamagitan ng text at e-mail para udyukan ang Comelec na alisin ang de-listing ng Migrante.
Ang protest jog sa Caloocan City ang una sa serye ng mga kilos-protesta ngayong linggo, na lulundo sa isang rali sa harap ng Comelec sa Nobyembre 12.
“Nagsisimula pa lamang uminit ang aming protesta. Tatapusin namin ang labang ito hanggang sa huli, o ang araw na sa wakas ay mabibigyan kami ng tsansa na mapakinggan at magkaroon ng tunay na kinatawan, at hindi na lamang ginagamit ng gobyerno para sa remittances na pinapadala ng aming mga pamilya,” sabi ni Gaborni.###
Reference:
Gina Gaborni,
Deputy Secretary General, 09074698126
Ailyn Abdula,
Media Officer, 09212708994
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Migrante supports Comelec Reso
7 November 2009
PRESS RELEASE:
Migrante supports Comelec resolution to bare party-list nominees;
dares electoral body to bare process of de-listing.
Migrante Sectoral Party today expressed support for the Commission on Elections Resolution 8691 requiring party-lists running in the 2010 elections to bare their nominees in order to ensure that they represent marginalized sectors.
“It is just correct that partylists bare their nominees so that party-list organizations backed by the administration, which ran in the last elections, be exposed to the public as fraud and bereft of marginalized constituencies,” said Connie Bragas-Regalado, chairperson of Migrante Sectoral Party.
Bragas-Regalado was referring to the party-lists Kasangga ang Bantay, whose representatives are Lourdes Arroyo, President Arroyo’s sister-in-law, and notorious human rights violator Gen. Jovito Palparan, respectively.
At the same time, the group challenged Comelec to bare as well the process that the electoral body undertook to come up with an earlier resolution to de-list Migrante, along with 25 other party-lists.
“Since we are on the issue of transparency, the Comelec should also reveal the proceedings of the En Banc meeting where it decided to de-list Migrante and other party-lists. We demand this because no hearing was held before they issued the questionable resolution, in violation of the Party-list System Act,” Bragas-Regalado further said.
Migrante Party-list is protesting what it calls the Comelec’s “intentional misreading” of the Party-list System Act in order to prevent party-lists critical of the administration from joining the electoral race.
“If the Comelec wants to ensure that the party-list system is used for the truly marginalized, it should review the basis of Migrante’s de-listing. It is unfathomable for it to deny millions of Overseas Filipino Workers a chance for representation while giving the same chance to fraudulent party-list groups,” said Bragas-Regalado.
OFWs from Migrante Sectoral Party’s 23 chapters abroad, as well as their families here, yesterday launched an international e-mail and text barrage to urge Comelec commissioners to “Let Migrante Run” in the 2010 elections. As the start of the period for filing manifestations for intent to run approaches, the group vowed to intensify the campaign for OFW representation and against Migrante’s de-listing. ###
Reference:
Connie Bragas-Regalado,
Chairperson, 09272157392
Ailyn Abdula,
Media Officer, 09212708994
PRESS RELEASE:
Migrante supports Comelec resolution to bare party-list nominees;
dares electoral body to bare process of de-listing.
Migrante Sectoral Party today expressed support for the Commission on Elections Resolution 8691 requiring party-lists running in the 2010 elections to bare their nominees in order to ensure that they represent marginalized sectors.
“It is just correct that partylists bare their nominees so that party-list organizations backed by the administration, which ran in the last elections, be exposed to the public as fraud and bereft of marginalized constituencies,” said Connie Bragas-Regalado, chairperson of Migrante Sectoral Party.
Bragas-Regalado was referring to the party-lists Kasangga ang Bantay, whose representatives are Lourdes Arroyo, President Arroyo’s sister-in-law, and notorious human rights violator Gen. Jovito Palparan, respectively.
At the same time, the group challenged Comelec to bare as well the process that the electoral body undertook to come up with an earlier resolution to de-list Migrante, along with 25 other party-lists.
“Since we are on the issue of transparency, the Comelec should also reveal the proceedings of the En Banc meeting where it decided to de-list Migrante and other party-lists. We demand this because no hearing was held before they issued the questionable resolution, in violation of the Party-list System Act,” Bragas-Regalado further said.
Migrante Party-list is protesting what it calls the Comelec’s “intentional misreading” of the Party-list System Act in order to prevent party-lists critical of the administration from joining the electoral race.
“If the Comelec wants to ensure that the party-list system is used for the truly marginalized, it should review the basis of Migrante’s de-listing. It is unfathomable for it to deny millions of Overseas Filipino Workers a chance for representation while giving the same chance to fraudulent party-list groups,” said Bragas-Regalado.
OFWs from Migrante Sectoral Party’s 23 chapters abroad, as well as their families here, yesterday launched an international e-mail and text barrage to urge Comelec commissioners to “Let Migrante Run” in the 2010 elections. As the start of the period for filing manifestations for intent to run approaches, the group vowed to intensify the campaign for OFW representation and against Migrante’s de-listing. ###
Reference:
Connie Bragas-Regalado,
Chairperson, 09272157392
Ailyn Abdula,
Media Officer, 09212708994
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