By SLOAN RAMOS with reports from MANNY LOSTE
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — The Makabayang Koalisyon ng Mamamayan (MAKABAYAN) expressed alarm in the recent upsurge of black propaganda being hurled against progressive party lists, adding that “this may precede another wave of human rights violations” on their members.

This was announced in a press conference on Wednesday called by the group. According to MAKABAYAN, different streamers and graffiti posted along Naguilian Road and Marcos Highway linking Makabayan’s senatorial bets and party lists to the Communist Party of the Philippines and New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

MAKABAYAN condemned this branding as an act that vilifies the candidates and besmirches the good record of the progressive partylists.

MAKABAYAN Baguio-Benguet said they have been receiving reports from the provinces in the Cordillera that progressive partylists as well as people’s organizations, are “being branded as fronts of the CPP-NPA” and are also being “linked to the armed rebels.”

MAKABAYAN added that this is not new, for the military has already been branding people’s organizations and partylists under the MAKABAYAN coalition as “enemies of the state.”

What concerns them, MAKABAYAN said, is that such unproven allegations may put the lives of their members in harms way. The spokespersons for the group also said that their members have become targets of “armed and unarmed attacks” due to this black propaganda being hurled at them.

MAKABAYAN reminded that they are “duly recognized by the COMELEC” and are registered by the Securities and Exchange Commission, and that they are not engaging in any illegal activities.

Their record in the past elections and the proven stellar record of their representatives in Congress is a well known fact. This may be the reason the military is branding them in an effort to discredit them before the voting public.

MAKABAYAN asserted they will hold the Arroyo administration and its security agencies responsible for any untoward incident directed against their members. # nordis.net