The Katipunan ng mga Lehitimong Magsasaka at Mamamayan ng Lupang Ramos (KASAMA-LR) condemned elements from the 2nd Civil-Military Operations (CMO) Battalion for harassment and filing of fabricated charges against residents of Purok 1, Barangay Langkaan 1, Dasmariñas, Cavite.
On August 17, Jojo Mercado, Miriam Villanueva, and other residents of Purok 5 received a notice from the barangay regarding a complaint of grave coercion filed against them for allegedly refusing to sell sanitary napkins to 2nd CMO 2nd Lt. Ann Kea Guillepa.
According to the residents, the complaint has no basis and serves only as one of the many forms of military harassment against them. Mercado added that it is within his rights to choose whom to serve in his store. He stressed that soldiers have harassed him several times. Mercado is currently the KASAMA-LR secretary general and Gabriela Women’s Party 5th nominee in the last elections.
This harassment is just one of the various types of intimidation they have endured since the 2nd CMO and Task Force Ugnay (TFU) militarized Lupang Ramos, including red-tagging, slandering the organization and its members, and offering houses and land in exchange for giving up their struggle. The fascist soldiers aim to drive out the residents and suppress the people’s fight for their right to land.
The 372-hectare land in Lupang Ramos legitimately belongs to the community farmers and residents. Since 2014, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has been grabbing sections of the land where it plans to construct electric posts. According to the group, they will never exchange their land rights for meager benefits.
On August 27, the group held a silent protest and a dialogue with the Sangguniang Barangay of Langkaan 1 regarding the presence of the TFU in their community.
KASAMA-LR calls for the immediate expulsion of the TFU and the 2nd CMO Battalion from their community. They also call for public support to end militarization in their area.
“The real struggle is not about napkins, but about the right to land and justice for farmers. What we want is land, not alms,” the group declared.
