JASS Southeast Asia joins its Filipino allies to bring a feminist agenda to another battle against political repression. On February 6, in a crackdown on Filipino activists in Mindanao reminiscent of the Marcos era and just 100 days before the presidential elections, 43 Filipino community health workers, including two pregnant women, were detained while conducting a training seminar, denied medical care and visits by relatives and friends, and reportedly tortured on suspicion of being Communist rebels. Relatives and colleagues accused the military of planting firearms and explosives at the training facility to justify the illegal arrest. Five of the detainees, including three women, are being held in solitary confinement. Through the Free the 43! Campaign, JASS’ partner in the Philippines, the Center for Women’s Resources, is pressing for their release.
