Philippines
Philippine activists build, burn effigy of ‘terror team’ of Duterte, Marcos and Sarah Duterte
Teodoro Alcuitas
Editor, philippinecandiannews.com (PCN.Com)
While Maria Ressa was receiving her Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo,Norway on December 10, thousands of Filipinos protested in the streets in he streets of Metro Manila to mark International Human Rights Day.
About 5,000 protesters shouted slogans, carried banners and effigies that criticized extrajudicial killings during President Rodrigo Duterte’s five-year-old war on illegal drugs, BenarNews reports.
“We had been shedding blood and tears since Duterte stepped into office almost six years ago,” said Evangeline Hernandez, chairwoman of Hustisya, a group representing victims of extrajudicial killings.
“Instead of addressing poverty and other pressing socio-economic concerns, this bloodthirsty tyrant betrayed the nation’s trust and killed thousands of innocent people through his administration’s futile counterinsurgency program and the war on drugs,” she said.
Data from the human rights alliance Karapatan shows that from July 2016 to November 2021, there were 424 victims of extrajudicial killings in the country, not including Duterte’s war on drugs which has killed about 8,000 suspected addicts and dealers, according to an official police count. Rights groups, including Karapatan, estimate the number could be between 20,000 and 30,000.
On Friday, Karapatan congratulated Ressa for the Nobel win and stressed that it was fitting that she was recognized on Human Rights Day.
“We recognize Ressa’s role as a prominent advocate of press freedom and freedom of expression,” the group said, stressing that Ressa’s Rappler, apart from its reporting of the drug war, had been at the forefront of covering press freedom violations, threats, and attacks against journalists and rights defenders.
“Amid attempts to silence critical voices, protests and dissent, those who dare to retell the truth and assert the people’s right to information contribute to the people’s broader movement for justice and accountability, Ressa and Rappler have made such contributions,” it said.
Protest Art in the Philippines
Protest art has always been a staple in the Philippines’ political and social culture. In contemporary times it has gained prominence thought the works of artists who used their art to reflect current social issues.
Among these is the artist collective , UgatLahi, a group started in the early 1990s creating images of protest. Since 2001, they have created effigies of the Philippine president for each State of the Nation Address. The group is also active in performance and installation art.
Most UGATLahi artists are often nicknamed as ‘artists of social conscience’, according to Wikipedia.
Here is a video of how the group created the ‘Three Monsters’ effigy.