MANILA, Philippines鈥擳he National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) decried Wednesday the alleged harassment of Quezon City policemen during a film showing event at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani in Quezon City over the weekend.
On February 28, filmmakers held 鈥淪ine Henerasyon,鈥� a film showing event, which featured documentaries like JL Burgos鈥� 鈥淧ortraits of Mosquito Press,鈥澛營lang-Ilang Quijano鈥檚 鈥淒aughters of Cordillera,鈥� and聽EJ Mijares鈥� 鈥淪hapes of Crimsom.鈥�
Portraits of a Mosquito is a documentary about 鈥淲e Forum and Malaya鈥檚鈥� struggles to assert press freedom during the Marcos dictatorship.
Quijano鈥檚 documentary, meanwhile, is about three generations of indigenous Igorot activists while Mijares鈥� Shapes of Crimson is about a veteran theater artist and cultural activist.
Rowena Paraan, chair of the NUJP quoted JL Burgos, one of the filmmakers in the event, saying that a patrol car and bomb squad vehicle from the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) Station 10 arrived at the venue around聽10 a.m.
The policemen allegedly told the organizers聽that they needed to 鈥渟weep鈥� the place since a VIP was set to arrive later in the day.
After the policemen departed, two of their members, both armed with assault rifles, remained near the venue.
However, No VIP showed up.
At around 4:30 p.m., Burgos said another group of policemen arrived.
After looking at the posters in the venue, they began asking the organizers if the films they were showing were about the New People鈥檚 Army (NPA).
Again, two of their members remained after the policemen had left the venue.
But according to Burgos, it wasn鈥檛 over.
He said another patrol car arrived at around 8 p.m. but immediately left when asked to explain why they were there.
鈥淏y lying about the reason for their presence in the first instance and the questions they asked when they returned that afternoon, it was clear that the QCPD personnel were out to intimidate the organizers of what, to them, probably constituted a 鈥渟ubversive鈥� activity that shouldn鈥檛 have been allowed at all,鈥� the NUJP said in statement.
The NUJP urged the Philippine National Police聽(PNP) to probe the alleged harassment of organizers.
鈥淭o ensure that such a display of official arrogance is never repeated, we call on the leadership of the Philippine National Police to live up to their oaths and investigate posthaste the actions of the QCPD personnel and impose the appropriate sanctions on those responsible for this ill-conceived attempt to stifle free expression,鈥� it said.
The group demanded that the QCPD apologize to the Sine Henerasyon organizers.
鈥淪o what, if, as the QCPD clearly believed, the films were about the NPA and other 鈥渟ubversive鈥� subjects? While it is true that the NPA is still outlawed, last we looked, discussing them and what they stand for, or even sympathizing with them, are not a crime,鈥� it said.
It added that the QCPD 鈥渋s in dire need of a refresher course鈥� on their motto, 鈥淭o Serve and Protect.鈥�