[asia-apec 1385] [cegp2] MARTIAL LAW IN SCHOOLS, DE FACTO NO MORE

[CEGP]

CEGP (College Editors Guild of the Philippines)
15 Jan. 2000

Martial law in schools, de facto no more 

Historically and in fact, police and military elements are coercive
tools of government. They are there to stifle the government's
opponents - whether real or imagined. It is there to make students and
the people uphold the status quo no matter how unjust, cruel and rotten
the latter may be. 

This is best shown in how the they operate their schools (like the
Philippine Military Academy), their human rights record, their
appreciation of these rights and other civil liberties and their
leaders (Estrada, Lacson and Lim).

And indeed, this was best shown in under martial law when the police
and military roamed the entire country. They transformed campuses and
the entire country into garrisons.

As such, the College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP) joins the
people in condemning the deployment of Marines in malls and schools. We
deem this as an insult to the pass efforts of the student movement to
remove these fascist brutes from our lives, including centers of
learning. We shall not make this pass. 

And by favoring any such plan, President Estrada is reaffirming his
reputation as the single-biggest enemy of press freedom and other
democratic rights.  

Allowing these fascist brutes to reenter campuses will worsen the
already deteriorating human rights situation on campus. They will play
a role in dousing cold water and maiming student activists and the
others whose only crime is to raise their voices against so many
injustices on campus. They are needed by school officials to frustrate
the impending student boycotts against the 18th round of tuition fee
increases since the approval of the Education Act of 1982. 

On the other hand, this is nothing new. The difference now is that
there now a formal character to the de facto martial law long plaguing
the nation's schools. 

Prior to this, administrators of many public and private schools have
sought police assistance for traffic and security like the Philippine
School for Business Administration and the University of the
Philippines, both in Quezon City.  In many others, these two parties -
the police and school officials - sign agreements for study grants and
discounts for cops. In others, like when the Philippines hosted the
Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, policemen and PMA cadets were
deployed in various schools in Central Luzon. 
Ostensibly, they study or help schools in security matters. But they
are very convenient in instilling a climate of fear and for pouring
cold water on embers of student dissent. 

Not unless President Estrada wants to inspire more vigorous, mammoth,
marathon protests from students, his government should shelve the plan
to put Marines in schools. No thanks to President Estrada himself,
there are more reasons to go to the streets on Jan. 24, the National
Day of Action for Press Freedom. #