Today, March 28, is significant for the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) for two reasons: it is former President Rodrigo Duterte’s 80^th birthday and labor leader Dandy Miguel’s fourth death annivesary. We call for justice for Pangulong Dandy and all the victims of extrajudicial killings in the labor movement during Duterte’s reign of darkness.

Pangulong Dandy, was 35 years old when he was killed and was the president of union Lakas ng Nagkakaisang Manggagawa ng Fuji Electric, vice-chairperson of regional labor group Pagkakaisa ng mga Manggagawa sa Timog Katagalugan (PAMANTIK), and a national council member of national labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU).

Pangulong Dandy was riding his motorcycle on his way home from work when he was shot eight times by unknown assassins in Canlubang village, Calamba City at 8:45 in the evening. It was a Sunday, three weeks after the “Bloody Sunday” joint military and police raids in the Southern Tagalog region that left labor leader Manny Asuncion and eight other activists dead.

Days before he died, Pangulong Dandy led Southern Tagalog activist leaders in filing complaints before the Commission on Human Rights in relation to the Bloody Sunday raids. On the night that he was murdered, despite the COVID-19-related curfews at the time, caskets that bore pictures of activists who were killed by state forces were left in the Boy Scout Rotonda in Quezon City and Guadalupe Bridge in Makati City.

President Duterte is celebrating his 80^th birthday in the custody of the International Criminal Court (ICC). He is enjoying the due process that he denied to suspected drug addicts and pushers and to labor and social activists whom he accused of being terrorists. Pangulong Dandy is among the more than 50 activists and leaders of the labor movement who were extra-judicially killed during the Duterte presidency.

Because of Duterte’s detention in the ICC, his supporters try make it appear that he is a victim. That is farthest from the truth; he is a victimizer. He is in fact only being tried for the drug war killings, not the killings of many labor activists and leaders during his presidency, yet we continue to demand justice.

We also call on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr to dismantle and undo the remaining legacies of the Duterte reign of terror. Stop the killings, harassment and imprisonment of labor activists and leaders. Free all detained labor activists and organizers and all political prisoners. End the conflation of unionism with insurgency and terrorism.

We also call on President Marcos Jr to: Abolish the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC). End the continuing drug war killings. Investigate all corruption cases involving the Dutertes. Push through with the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.