Story by K.M.
Student councils across the UP System condemned the heightened military presence within campuses amid the students’ return to face-to-face classes.
On the first day of the 55th General Assembly of Student Councils at UP Mindanao, reports from various UP units showed the rising number of cases of police presence and rights violations such as red-tagging and student profiling in their respective campuses.
The 1989 UP-DND Accord initially prohibited military forces from entering any UP campus without proper justification before the Duterte administration terminated it in 2021. Meanwhile, the 1992 UP-DILG Accord, which applies to police officers, still stands.
Despite this, outgoing UP Diliman University Student Council (USC) Chairperson Latrell Felix stressed that at least 66 reported cases of police sightings have been documented since last January.
These cases range from police mobiles roaming around the campus for “printing” purposes to military personnel conducting seminars in colleges that red-tag progressive groups.
“Hindi tayo tunay na ligtas kapag nasa loob ng mga campuses natin ang kapulisan,” she stressed.
UP Cebu USC also raised the alarm about the police holding “educational” seminars for its students.
“Hindi [nila] inaanounce na magdi-discuss pala about anti-terrorism campaign tapos ang ginagawa lang naman nila ay manredtag ng progressive organizations,” the council said.
Meanwhile, UP Manila (UPM) USC denounced the signing of the five-year Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between their administration and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) without prior student consultations.
The MOA enables the UPM College of Dentistry to provide dental training to the civilian and military dentists of the AFP, establishing ties between the university and state forces.
However, according to Councilor Rebecca Baliton, the agreement could be an avenue to incite military incursions in their campus.
“Ang panghihimasok ng mga armed forces ay banta sa seguridad at demokratikong kalayaan sa mga estudyante,” Baliton said.
The UP Tacloban (UPTac) USC and UP Los Baños (UPLB) USC also decried the militarization of student spaces beyond their campus grounds.
UPTac USC Chairperson Paul Lachica reported that seeing the police eating in their karinderyas has become a “normal occurrence” for the students due to the persisting presence of military personnel in their colleges and local high schools.
“Ito ang dahilan kung bakit patuloy pa rin ang mga red-tagging at student profiling. Kumakalat din ang mga intel,” Lachica added.
Intimidation and Harassment
Apart from military sightings and interventions, the councils reported worsening cases of red-tagging and harassment in the previous academic year.
During their community practicum program, students from UPM were interrogated by individuals who later identified themselves as members of the 85th Infantry Battalion of the AFP.
Manila Collegian reported that the military personnel also attempted to take photos of the students who resisted. The students later on filed a formal blotter report to the barangay hall within the community.
UPM USC denounced the military’s intimidation of the students who had approved documents for conducting the practicum.
UP Visayas USC also detailed threats and harassment experienced by student activists during this year’s EDSA commemoration when Iloilo police barred them from marching from their campus to Iloilo Provincial Capitol.
“Blatant na paglabag ito sa karapatan natin na malayang magmobilisa, mag-organisa at wala silang karapatan na kuhanin ang pangalan at i-probe ng very personal questions ang mga estudyante,” Chairperson Audrey Dayata said.
Last March, a student from UP Mindanao (UPMin) was also threatened by state forces, saying they would be profiled as a “red fighter” if they refused to cooperate. UPMin USC Chairperson Guiani recalled that their students were tagged as “rebels” and their families received unwarranted threats.
“It’s disappointing and disheartening na ‘yung admin ay itinuturing nila ito na isolated case, mas malala ay itinuturing nila itong prank call,” she said.
A dangerous precedent
In his end-of-term report, outgoing Student Regent Siegfred Severino denounced the frequent police incursions in campuses, citing that it sets “a dangerous precedent” for students’ safety and welfare.
“Sunod-sunod ‘yung intrusyon ng mga militar sa ating campuses. Hindi natin maasahan na mai-push pa natin sa kongreso itong UP-DND accord sa UP Charter,” he added.
Last June, Department of National Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said that he would neither reverse his predecessor’s decision nor back laws that would institutionalize the agreement.
During his privilege speech, UPLB Student Regent (SR) nominee John Peter Garcia emphasized the need to establish committees and institute mechanisms to protect the rights of the students.
“Hindi lang [ito] depensa sa ating mga karapatan, kundi opensiba rin laban sa mga lumalabag sa mga karapatang pantao,” he added.
Amid intensified state-sponsored attacks, Garcia urged the students to fight back and hold the state forces accountable for human rights violations.
Today, the student councils are set to select the 40th SR, the sole representative of the student body in the UP Board of Regents.