Foreigners in Apec rally: ‘Tanim-bala’ scarier than riot cops

BLENDING IN, SPEAKING OUT Despite the threat of arrest, foreign activists join local counterparts to voice out their anti-Apec sentiments in protests held Thursday in Manila, Parañaque and Pasay City. Aie Balagtas See

For two foreigners who came to the country to join the protests against the Asia-Pacific Economic Conference (Apec) meetings, the prospect of being a “tanim-bala” (bullet-planting) victim was scarier than being arrested by the police.

“As I’ve told people, I’m more afraid of getting run down in the streets  [of] Manila and more afraid of having someone stick a bullet in my luggage on my way out,” Malcolm Guy, a Canadian and secretary general of the International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS), told the Inquirer Thursday.

He and Leila Khaled of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) were the only foreigners who spoke at the anti-Apec rally organized by local militant groups. Around 300 demonstrators attended what was dubbed the “Battle of Manila” in Pasay City, the closest they could get to the Philippine International Convention Center where world leaders and their delegations were gathered.

“They claim they are building a better world, a more inclusive economy. But all of us know that in fact Apec is peddling a lie. And in our opinion, ours would be a better world without Apec,” Guy said.

He told the Inquirer that he and Khaled, together with 400 others, were here for the 5th general assembly of ILPS, an international coalition  of more than 350 group from 40 countries promoting and supporting people’s struggle worldwide against imperialism.

During their march to the corner of Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue (Buendia), the demonstrators figured in skirmishes with antiriot policemen. with Renato Reyes, secretary general of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), claiming that at least 20 of their members were injured.

Canadian, Malcolm Guy of the International League of Peoples’ Struggle, even took to the stage to denounce the “lies” being peddled by Apec. Aie Balagtas See

The march started around 8 a.m. at Liwasang Bonifacio until they reached Pasay City after two hours.

“While we were marching here, the comrades told me not to come to the front. They said they [will disperse us with] water. I said, ‘It’s OK, we’ll have a shower.’ In Palestine, we meet bullets with our bare breasts. We are not afraid,” Khaled told the crowd.

She also criticized the policemen for playing loud music to drown out the speeches of the protestors. In her speech, she told the crowd that “the voice of the people is always higher that all the leaders of the world. Nothing can pacify us. Whether in Palestine or in Manila. Whether here or in the United States. The people shall be always victorious even if the road is paved with blood.”

During his turn to speak on stage,  Guy exposed “global” problems and contradictions. “Why is it that when we have more and more police, more and more military, more and more prison, more and more high-tech weapons, why is it that we all feel less safe than we have ever been?” he said.

He added: “That is because of the question of militarization; they say it’s good for the world [but] it’s a lie. The same with Apec; the more they say they are building a better world and a more inclusive economy, the less we believe them.”

Meanwhile, foreigners who participated in anti-Apec rallies will be investigated, according to the spokesperson of the National Capital Region Police Office.

“Under our law, generally, they are not allowed to do those things,” Chief Insp. Kimberly Molitas told the Inquirer in a phone interview.

Although no foreigner was spotted during a rally in Baclaran, Parañaque City, Thursday, there were reports of foreign-looking participants in other protests.

According to Molitas, these foreigners would first be “identified” by the Bureau of Immigration and then undergo an investigation.

She said the immigration status of the foreigners would be checked, and certain questions like what they were doing in the country would be asked.

She did not say what sanctions the foreigners could face but said arrests would not be made while the rallies were ongoing.

“We don’t do that. We weigh the situation; we want a peaceful rally,” Molitas said.

She added that they would continue deploying policemen to different areas until Nov. 21 but this would “depend on the assessment of all other agencies” involved in Task Force Apec.