The Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) recognizes and celebrates the legal victories that activists have won in the previous week. These wins give the Filipino workers and people hope and inspire all labor and human rights defenders to demand more in the coming months.

>> June 4 – a Bulacan court cleared environmental activists Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro of grave oral defamation, which was filed by Lieutenant Colonel Ronnel dela Cruz, commander of the 70th Infantry Battalion. The military unit is responsible for abducting the two in September 2023 and trying to present them as rebel returnees before the media.

>> Early in June – a Rizal court acquitted public sector unionist Eugene Eugenio of charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives that were filed a in relation to the “Bloody Sunday” coordinated military-police raids in the Southern Tagalog region in March 2021 that resulted in the death of five activists and the arrest of four others.

Eugenio is president of the Advancement of Rights and Responsibilities of Organized Workers (ARROW), an organization of government employees in Antipolo, Rizal which is affiliated with public sector union center Confederation for Unity, Recognition and Advancement of Government Employees or COURAGE.

>> June 5 – a Bohol court cleared United Church of Christ in the Philippines or UCCP pastor Rev. Nathaniel “Dodo” Vallente of the remaining charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives that were filed against him and caused his detention in June 2019 after being arrested by more than 70 military and police personnel.

>> June 3 – a Cebu court acquitted Lopito Jabagat and Eduardo Cullamat, political prisoners for eight years, of charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives and obstruction of justice.

We celebrate these legal victories even if the courts took years before making these decisions favorable to activists. These wins definitely give us hope to continue to struggle for the junking of trumped-up charges filed against activists and for the freedom of activists who remain in jail because of these charges.

These legal victories clearly show that the Rodrigo Duterte government actively planted evidence and filed fabricated charges to detain and harass activists and prevent them from fulfilling their roles in defending Filipinos’ labor and human rights. Sadly, many activists remain in jail or continue to face charges until now.

The labor movement alone still has 23 political detainees due to planted evidence and fabricated charges. They come from organizations that the government red-tagged and demonized to try to justify their persecution.

The Ferdinand Marcos Jr government, meanwhile, is taking a snail’s pace in addressing these cases of planted evidence, fabricated charges and outright persecution. We vow to intensify our protests and actions to demand the freedom of our brothers and sisters in the labor and the people’s movement. Every minute that they remain in jail is an injustice.

One government agency is responsible for these fabricated and harassment charges – the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict or NTF-ELCAC. The junking of these charges once again proves that the Duterte-created monster that is the NTF-ELCAC should be abolished. We condemn Marcos Jr for maintaining the agency despite numerous calls for its abolition.