Marcos assailed for failing to condemn Israeli genocide
It has been 19 days of non-stop bombing of Gaza by Israel and the death toll has been horrendous. So far 6,546 people have been confirmed killed according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. This includes 2,704 children, 1,584 women, and 364 elderly people. Residential areas, hospitals, schools and churches have been bombed. Health workers and journalists have been killed.
It is imperative that the Philippine government condemn in no uncertain terms the genocide against Palestinians and stop giving any from of political and material support for the Israeli occupation. It is urgent and necessary for the Philippine government to call out the United States for its unequivocal support of the terrible actions of Israel.
The Marcos regime, to its shame, has been silent over the mass killings in Gaza. It has not condemned the genocide unfolding before our eyes. Instead, we get “sarcastic” tweets from an ambassador who seemingly fails to grasp the severity of the situation. Expressions of “sadness” and “deep concern” without pointing out the main culprit in the genocide are hollow and meaningless at this point. General calls of “de-escalation and dialogue” do not pinpoint who is primarily responsible for the atrocities being committed in Gaza.
All Philippine arms sales contracts with Israel should be scrapped as we do not want our taxes to be paying for occupation and genocide. The Philippines is the third largest buyer of Israeli arms from 2018-2022 totaling $275 million or more than P15 billion. This year, the Philippines is set acquire surveillance planes from Israel worth $114 million, on top of other weapons such as drones, mortars and tanks used to kill Filipinos.
Filipinos and Palestinians are linked by a common desire to be free from all forms of foreign aggression. We are linked by a common fight against US imperialism which is the main backer of Zionism.
Bayan calls on all its member organizations and chapters here and abroad to support the various protests worldwide against the Israeli genocide on the Palestinian people. We invite the public to the protest action that will be held tomorrow along Katipunan Avenue in front the Student Union Building in UP Diliman. More protests will come until the bombings stop and until Palestine is free. ###
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