Death of Trade Unionist leads to Protests in the Philippines

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Oct 19, 2023 - 11:50
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Death of Trade Unionist leads to Protests in the Philippines
Photo Source: Workers and other organizations protesting the death of Jude Fernandez, Quezon City, Philippines, by Jire Carreon, via Rappler, 5th October 2023

18-10-2023

Nuno Daun

Southeast Asia & Pacific Team 

Global Human Rights Defense

Background

On the 29th of September 2023, the Philippine National Police (PNP) went to Rizal to the house of trade unionist, Jude Thaddeus Fernandez, which led to an altercation in which Jude Fernandez was shot and killed. The PNP allege that the shooting was a result of Jude Fernandez “fighting back,” whilst being served with a search warrant. The PNP have still not released a statement on the reason why Jude Fernadez’s house was being searched. However, the PNP maintains that Jude Fernandez was not the subject of the search warrant and has inconsistently denied involvement in the killing of Jude Fernandez.

Most of the concerns raised by the people protesting and many other human rights groups is the fact that the PNP have used “fighting back” as a justification for extrajudicial killings, which has been a common occurrence. Moreover, many are concerned with the legitimacy of the alleged claims by the PNP, since Jude Fernandez was a 67 year-old man.  In 2019, it was reported that the PNP raided a compound in the province of Cavite and subsequently killed nine activists and, labor and trade unionists, using the same justification of “fighting back.”

Current state of affairs

Following the breaking news of the death of Jude Fernandez, many took to the streets to protest the recurring situation and the lack of investigation surrounding this and similar cases. 

On the 5th of October, many protesters, including human rights groups, held a rally in front of the PNP headquarters in Quezon City demanding that the death of Jude Fernandez be properly investigated whilst refuting the claims that Jude Fernandez was shot due to having “fought back.” Many worker unions have reported the harassment and killing of trade unionists but claim to have seen little to no responsive action. Jude Fernandez is the 72nd reported victim of a labor union-related killing since 2016.

Byony Lau, a deputy director for Asia at Human Rights Watch claims that the “killing of Jude Fernandez fits into a broader pattern of harassment and violence against labor leaders in the Philippines.” Further stating that local authorities have gone unpunished for these killings. The International Labor Organization (ILO) sent a mission to the Philippines to independently investigate these killings. 

According to the reports, the PNP had often “red-tagged” the deceased victims. The PNP uses the term “red-tagged” to single out a person who they might believe to be a member of the New People’s Army, a communist party. To date, most of the labor unionists harassed or killed by the police had been “red-tagged,” hinting at a possible correlation between protesting/fighting for labor rights and being categorized a member of a communist party. 

Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued an executive order as a response to the ILO’s investigation, with the aim of “reinforcing and protecting” labor rights. Human Rights Watch called on the European Union and on the United States to place measures on the current administration to ensure that the investigations are followed through and that the perpetrators do not leave with impunity once again.

 

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