KMU Southern Mindanao

22/09/2026

17/09/2026

17/09/2026

On theSept. 21 martial law anniversary
BAYAN TO CLAIRE CASTRO: ENOUGH OF FEARMONGERING, ADDRESS PEOPLE’S GRIEVANCES

Presidential Spokesperson Claire Castro should address the legitimate and urgent issues that BAYAN and other groups intend to raise in the September 21 protests instead of resorting to fearmongering and gaslighting.

As made clear in yesterday's press conference, the September 21 rally is an exercise of the people's constitutional right to peacefully assemble and seek redress of grievances, among them the continuing lack of accountability over the flood control scam and other corruption scandals, continued dominance of political dynasties, stagnant wages amidst rising prices, repression of civil rights, as well as Pax Silica and the Marcos administration's utter subservience to US imperialism.

Castro's repeated warnings about violence aim to divert attention from these pressing issues and unfairly cast suspicion on those who want to exercise their democratic rights. The government should be addressing corruption, poverty, human rights violations, and threats to national sovereignty, not manufacturing fear around legitimate protests.

If Castro is serious in claiming that President Marcos respects freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, then his administration must demonstrate this in practice. BAYAN and other protesters should be allowed to assemble at Liwasang Bonifacio, march to Mendiola, and hold a protest program there without being blocked or dispersed by the PNP.

The real test of the administration's respect for democratic rights is not what Castro says in Malacañang, but what the police will do on the streets on September 21.

07/09/2026

The problem is much bigger than today’s inflationary surge. Price increases translate immediately into hunger, deprivation, and debt when wages are too low, jobs are insecure, and families have little protection against economic shocks. The Marcos government’s persistent understatement of the country’s poverty and jobs crisis rationalizes social protection falling far short of what is needed.

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05/09/2026

IN THE NEWS: Kilusang Mayo Uno Southern Mindanao said workers affected by the Davao operation were left with little clarity or immediate support after the plant was shut down.

Around 900 workers lost jobs or income after government raids.

04/09/2026

IN THE NEWS: [T]he Kilusang Mayo Uno-Southern Mindanao Region (KMU-SMR) said enforcement operations must be accompanied by measures to protect affected workers’ jobs, wages, and livelihoods.

Labor groups on Friday, Sept. 4, called for immediate government assistance for more than 900 workers they said were affected by raids and resulting work...

01/09/2026

PALAYAIN SI JOHN RUIZ!

Mariing kinukundena ng Kilusang Mayo Uno ang pag-aresto kay John Ruiz, Makabayan Vice President for Visayas. Kasunod ito ng pagkilos ng mga manggagawa at mamamayang Cebuano kahapon laban sa imperyalistang pandarambong at gera upang ipagdiwang ang National Heroes Day.

Bahagi ito ng nagpapatuloy na atake laban sa mga progresibo sa Cebu. Kamakailan, iligal na tinanggal sa trabaho si BIEN Vice President for Visayas Kyle Enero sa kasagsagan ng paglaban para sa makabuluhang dagdag-sahod at ng paglalantad ng karumaldumal na kalagayan sa paggawa ng BPO workers. Gayundin, kinasuhan ng paglabag ng BP880 si KMU Vice Chairperson for Visayas Jaime Paglinawan kaugnay ng protesta sa DPWH laban sa korapsyon noong nakaraang taon.

Nananawagan ang KMU para sa kagyat na paglaya ni John Ruiz, at sa agarang pagbabasura ng mga gawa-gawang kaso laban sa kanya at sa lahat ng progresibong mamamayang naggigiit ng kanilang mga makatwirang panawagan. Karapatan ng mamamayan ang magpahayag at magprotesta!

30/08/2026

: International Day of the Disappeared

Statement | From father to son, state abductions continue to silence dissent

The Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) today calls for the immediate surfacing of all desaparecidos as it marks the International Day of the Disappeared, saying the continued abduction of activists shows that state forces still use enforced disappearance to silence dissent.

CTUHR highlights four cases of labor activists who were abducted and remain missing: labor organizer Elizabeth “Loi” Magbanua, agricultural organizer William Lariosa, urban poor leader Iver Larit, and former labor information officer James Jazmines.

Magbanua was abducted in Metro Manila in May 2022. Lariosa was abducted in Bukidnon in April 2024, while Larit and Jazmines were abducted in Negros and Albay in April 2022 and August 2024, respectively.

“These cases show that abduction remains a tool to silence workers, activists, and community leaders. The state cannot claim to respect human rights while people who speak up for their communities continue to disappear,” said Kamz Deligente, CTUHR executive director.

CTUHR says the four cases also show how families are left without answers while state institutions fail to provide effective remedies or accountability.

In Magbanua’s case, her family continues to seek answers despite the Supreme Court’s issuance of a writ of amparo (https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CoHK3MnoB/). In Lariosa’s case, local courts have dismissed petitions filed by his family seeking information on his whereabouts (https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CKnrjk7hN/).

Larit was subjected to red-tagging and legal harassment before he disappeared, while Jazmines had faced surveillance and threats before his disappearance. His wife had also been publicly red-tagged.

“The labor sector has long faced this form of state violence. From Cory Aquino to the present, successive governments have failed to dismantle the system that allows activists and labor organizers to be abducted and disappeared,” Deligente said.

The Marcos Jr. administration has a responsibility to end this continuing pattern of enforced disappearance instead of allowing it to become part of another administration's record of human rights violations.

The group notes that the Marcos Sr. dictatorship was responsible for the disappearance of 1,000 people. Under Marcos Jr., at least 15 activities have reportedly disappeared.

“From father to son, the machinery of abduction remains. Marcos Jr. must not allow his administration to inherit and perpetuate the practice of using state power to silence those who challenge the injustice,” Deligente added.

CTUHR highlights that enforced disappearance violates fundamental rights protected under the 1987 Constitution, including the rights to life, liberty, freedom of expression, and peaceful assembly.

The group also calls on the government to sign and ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED), which provides an international framework for preventing and addressing enforced disappearances.

CTUHR expresses its solidarity with the families of victims and joins the call to surface all desaparecidos and hold accountable all those responsible for disappearance of thousands of rights activists.

30/08/2026

On the International Day of Victims of Enforced Disappearances 2026, the Surface William Lariosa Network (SWLN), along with fellow human rights advocates, reaffirms its resolve in the struggle for truth and justice as it continues its search for William Lariosa and all desaparecidos.

Despite persistent advocacy, protest, and legal action, desaparecidos like William Lariosa are still missing and the reactionary state led by Ferdinand Marcos Jr. remains to be the prime perpetrator of impunity in the country. Accountability is zilch. We in the SWLN hold the Marcos Jr. regime and its military cohorts responsible for all cases of enforced disappearance and violations of the freedom of association (FOA) in Southern Mindanao and nationwide, and we call on all Dabawenyos and the wider Filipino public to resist repression and human rights violations through our vigilance and collective action.