About 100 Negrenses marked the 54th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law by accusing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of being no different than his father, at a rally in front of the Bacolod City Government Center replica in Bacolod City on Monday, Sept. 21.
Noli Rosales, secretary-general of Bayan Negros, said the vast majority of people in Negros continue to live in poverty amid a sugar industry crisis reminiscent of the Martial Law era under former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
Rosales slammed government’s sugar importation, and government’s failure to address the industry’s decline.
He also said land grabbing, poverty and joblessness persist under the Marcos Jr. administration.
Rosales called for the accountability of corrupt officials and the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Fr. Melvin P. Fajardo, chairperson of Human Rights Advocates in Negros (HRAN), also called for transparency and accountability in government.
Fajardo said that five decades after the collective action of the Filipino people toppled Marcos Sr., fundamental socio-economic conditions remain unchanged.
Under the administration’s “Bagong Pilipinas” (New Philippines) banner, farmers in Negros remain landless while agricultural wealth remains concentrated in the hands of landlords and foreign interests, perpetuating low wages and widespread poverty, he claimed.
Fajardo also warned that the state continues to enforce a de facto state of martial law through systematic militarization, which he said directly fuels an ongoing cycle of state-sponsored violence across Negros Island.*
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