Also posted is the complete report of the IPSM delivered to the Commission on Human Rights, Senate and the House of Representatives with some details of the latest cases of killings, abductions, harassment and burning of homes.

The broad, church-initiated advocacy group Patriots has replied to the red smear against it by Malacañang, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the Philippine National Police. Patriots had been given the red tag in an "intelligence report" by the military, which had come out in the major newspapers last May 21.

Patriots had earned the ire of the Arroyo administration for its daring exposes against electoral fraud and violence, which it is the latter's primary responsibility to combat being the incumbent.

The group has also sent a letter to the editor of the Philippine Daily Inquirer in reply to the paper's May 24 editorial containing a number of baseless accusations and insinuations against it.

Quezon City, Philippines (Indymedia QC) -- Jeepney drivers all over the country will go on strike again on March 30. It is a follow-up to the successful transport strike last March 1, which was able to paralyze some 90 percent of transportation in the routes it affected.

The transport groups are complaining that their long-standing demands for a fare increase and oil price rollback are still unheeded. The last time transport groups were authorized to increase fare was in 2000. Since then, diesel prices have increased by almost P5 and the oil companies are accused of blatant overpricing. Jeepney drivers, on the other hand, are left with P160 per day to take home, way below the P555 which, according to the socio-economic think tank Ibon Foundation, an average Filipino family needs to survive daily.

Quezon City, Philippines (Indymedia QC) -- The Water for the People Network, a coalition of consumer activists and organizations, has condemned the bailout agreement between the wealthy Lopez clan and the government. Together with the French water giant Suez, Lopez-owned Benpres is controlling Maynilad, one of the two private concessionaires that are distributing water in Metro Manila since the privatization of the service in 1997.

While the company has raised water rates by 226 percent and both Benpres and Suez have milked the company dry, Maynilad accumulated a debt of P8 billion to the government. Under the current bailout agreement, the government will not collect these unpaid concession fees and assume almost P11 billion in outstanding obligations of the near-bankrupt company in exchange for shares. While this deal obviously favors Benpres and Suez instead of the consumers, the latter will have to bear a new rate increase of 32 percent.

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (Indymedia QC) – Thousands of flag-waving women and men took to the streets on March 8 in a protest march from Plaza Miranda to Mendiola Bridge and called for the junking of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in the coming national elections.

“Poor women have had enough of Mrs. Arroyo. She may be a woman and the second womn-president but that has not made a difference. We will be better off without her!” was the oft-repeated message from the moment the women-marchers reached Mendiola Bridge until the end of their program.

Gabriela and its political party, the Gabriela Women’s Partylist (GWP) led the demonstrations in Manila and across the country.

Gabriela marks its 20th year this 2004 as the biggest, most militant and most influential national alliance of women’s organizations with the GWP joining the forthcoming partylist elections.

The two leading women's groups got their from Gabriela Silang, the greatest woman revolutionary who took up arms against Spanish colonizers.

In a statement, former House of Representatives member Liza Maza, erstwhile secretary-general of Gabriela and now the president of GWP, said that "as the world pays homage to women on this day for our significant roles in nation building, Gabriela takes this occasion to challenge all women's groups and individuals to work harder for genuine social and political change. We call on everyone to commemorate this special day to reinvigorate ourselves in our continuing struggle for women's rights, welfare and genuine liberation along with the democratic people's movement of the world."

Maza, who is the lead nominee of GWP in the partylist polls, led leaders in the march from Plaza Miranda to Mendiola Bridge. Before they crossed the intersection towards the historic bridge, activists unveiled and displayed big carton letters spelling words "JUNK GLORIA".

Gloria refers to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the only woman presidential candidate in the May elections.

Earlier, Gabriela and GWP hosted a protest program at Plaza Miranda where an anti-Arroyo presidential candidate, Eddie Villanueva, spoke to the throngs of women and men.

Also in attendance in both rallies were leaders and members of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Kilusang Mayo Uno, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, Migrante International and partylist groups Bayan Muna, Anakpawis and Migrante Sectoral Party.

Recently, Gabriela and GWP launched a new campaign dubbed "Blow a Whistle" to battle violence against women and children. It is also fighting for the release of "Zeneida Llesis", a woman political prisoner, and her child who are both being held captive by the Arroyo administration.

QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES (Indymedia QC) -- Yesterday's national transport strike against unreasonably high oil prices successfully paralyzed Quezon City as well as the rest of Metro Manila and most provincial cities and towns including Central Luzon and Mindanao.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo resorted to threats with cancelations of the strikers' franchise to operate. Twelve activists from PISTON and KMU who joined the protests along Kalayaan Avenue in Quezon City were illegally arrested and detained for almost 15 hours by the police.

Militant labor center KMU called the strike a success as major oil companies were forced to rollback prices of LPG by P1.50 per kilogram or P17 per tank.

QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES (Indymedia QC) -- Drivers belonging to the Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON, Unity of Drivers and Operators Associations Nationwide) today called on fellow drivers and the public to join a nationwide transport strike on Monday, March 1.

According to PISTON chairperson Mar Gavida, drivers are demanding a P1.00 increase in the jeepney fares and a rollback in overpriced oil prices.

"Drivers have a right to decent living. The real enemies of the people, including drivers, are the government and the foreign-dominated oil industry led by Shell, Caltex and Petron," said Gavida.

He said that "without a a fare hike and an oil price rollback, drivers would be consigned to subhuman living conditions."

Since two weeks ago, PISTON affiliates in the provinces have waged local transport strikes.

Among the groups supporting the PISTON strike are the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU, May First Labor Center), Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (KADAMAY, Alliance of Urban Poor Associations) and the national political party ANAKPAWIS (Toiling Masses). ###

Since the Philippine government privatized the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) in 1997, consumers in Metro Manila, including Quezon City, have been burdened by rising water rates and poor water services. Two private concessionaires – Maynilad Water Services Inc. of Benpres and French water giant Suez; and Manila Water Company Inc. of the Ayala Corporation and American company Bechtel – have taken over the supply of drinking water. The privatization of Metro Manila water is known the world over as a failure. Ironically, pushed by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, privatization schemes are also cooked up outside the capital, including Laguna, Iloilo and Bacolod.

The Water for all Network, which was launched recently, has planned a number of activities to denounce the privatization of water. As they believe water resources are part of the national patimony, they also oppose big dam projects like the San Roque Dam in the Cordillera region.

Last Jan. 22, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP - Peasant Movement of the Philippines) remembered how 17 years ago in Mendiola at the approach of the presidential palace, Marines and police opened fire at some 30,000 peasant protesters and 13 of them were killed. KMP chairperson Rafael Mariano said at that occasion that the case is not a closed book. He actually wants a bill filed in Congress for indemnification of the victims and their families.

(Right: Bulatlat.com file photo)

The marchers wanted to go to historic Mendiola bridge to hold a program, but the police blocked them using as excuse the "no permit, no rally" policy. The police trained the firemen's water cannons against the rallyists. Eventually, the rallyists were able to march to Mendiola and held a 4-hour program there.

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