Labor groups burn an effigy of President Benigno Aquino III during their annual Labor Day rally at Mendiola Bridge on Wednesday. MATIKAS SANTOS
MANILA, Philippines – Labor Day protesters burned an effigy of President Benigno Aquino III at Mendiola Bridge in Manila to symbolize the supposed condition of Filipinos under his administration.
Protesters cheer as flames consume an effigy of President Benigno Aquino III. JAMIE ELONA
The 2000-strong protesters, led by labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno, arrived at the bridge past 6 p.m.
The 10-foot tall effigy created by artists from the UgatLahi Artist Collective depicted Aquino and Uncle Sam as two-headed snake coiled around an electric pole, which symbolized the Filipino people.
“Patuloy nilang ginigipit at pinaparusahan ang bayan sa patuloy na pagtaas ng bayarin sa kuryente, tubig, langis at iba pa araw-araw. Mas pinapahirapan pa ang sambayanan na naghihirap na,” the group said.
Elmer “Ka Bong” Labog, KMU chairperson, said the effigy also “shows how workers see Aquino–a snake, a traitor to the Filipino people and a shameless lackey of the US.”
“The burdens behind the backs of the Filipino workers and urban poor are getting more and more unbearable because of Aquino’s subservience to the dictates of the US and of his big capitalists cohorts,” he added.