Mendiola declared no-rally zone;
protesters vow to defy order

THOUSANDS of ralliers now converging in Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila vow to march to Mendiola at four o’clock this afternoon, despite warnings from police authorities that the “rule of law” will be upheld if protesters insist on staging rallies in areas declared as no-rally zones. The government of Manila has granted rally permits for Plaza Miranda and Liwasang Bonifacio, but not for Mendiola.

Militant and labor groups are staging Labor Day protests all around Metro Manila, demanding for a wage increase and President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s removal from office.

Neri Colmenares of the Counsels for the Defense of Liberties said they remain unfazed by threats of dispersal and arrest. To begin with, he said, the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) prohibition against conducting rallies in Mendiola was “illegal.”

Colmenares said that under Batas Pambansa 880 or the Public Assembly Act, there must be “clear and convincing evidence that the public assembly will create a clear and present danger to public order” before a permit for an assembly can be denied.

Authorities have earlier announced that holding protest rallies in Mendiola would violate BP 880.

“The rally in Mendiola is not against the rule of law,” Colmenares said. “It’s a constitutional right.” He added that PNP’s prohibition was in contempt of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Calibrated Preemptive Response policy. The High court on April 25 declared the CPR policy as unconstitutional. Under the CPR, rallies without permits could be broken up and “unruly” protesters, arrested. The policy was issued by Malacañang in September last year, following a series of anti-government protests.

Colmenares said that if police will attempt to disperse rallies in Mendiola today, his group will file criminal charges against Manila mayor Lito Atienza, National Capital Region Police chief Vidal Querol, and Philippine National Police chief Arturo Lomibao.

Military trucks and about 1,000 anti-riot police have been deployed at the foot of the Mendiola bridge where militant and labor groups, led by the Kilusang Mayo Uno, will converge after a short program in Liwasang Bonifacio. The so-called “Batasan Five” are expected to address the crowd at 1:30 p.m. (The five lawmakers have been staying in the House of Representatives since the declaration of Proclamation 1017, when police threatened to arrest them on rebellion charges.)

Querol said around 6,000 police have been stationed in different areas in Metro Manila and around 2,000 officers are on standby. Police are monitoring rallies being held in Plaza Miranda, where protests are being led by the Alliance of Progressive Labor, an organization of several labor groups; Welcome Rotonda; Quezon City Circle; the University of the Philippines in Quezon City; and Plaza Salamangca in Taft Avenue in Manila, where pro-Estrada groups are holding rallies.

Police have been instructed to observe maximum tolerance in dealing with today’s protest actions, even as authorities called on the ralliers to stay in designated rally sites to avoid violent confrontations with anti-riot forces.