MANILA, Philippines?Five years after the bloody Hacienda Luisita massacre, justice has yet to be served to the victims and their families.
And, according to the militant group Bayan (Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, New Patriotic Alliance), the government is the only one to blame for the lack of action against police and military personnel.
To commemorate the fifth anniversary of the so-called Hacienda Luisita massacre, Bayan led a 100-vehicle caravan that left early Monday from the Department of Agriculture office along the Elliptical Road in Quezon City to the Cojuangco-owned Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac.
Bayan Secretary General Renato Reyes Jr. said the caravan was to serve as a protest against trade union repression.
"It's been five years and still no justice for the victims. There is still no justice for the numerous victims of extrajudicial killings of participants and supporters of the strike. There is still no accountability for the carnage of November 16," Reyes said.
On November 16, 2004, at least seven protesting farmers were killed in a clash with police and military personnel.
"Luisita is the symbol of the failure of government, from the Aquino regime to the present, to resolve the agrarian issue that is festering throughout the country. Luisita is just one of the many estates still under big landlord control and where feudal exploitation remains," Reyes said.
According to Reyes's Twitter account, the 100-vehicle caravan has reached Capas, Tarlac as of posting time.
Reyes said the caravan was also timed a few months before the 2010 national elections, where "candidates from landowning families fight for the top position in the country."