Hacienda Luisita and the 2010 elections

The Philippines marks today the Hacienda Luisita massacre of Nov. 16, 2004 when government troops used arms to dismantle the picketline set up by striking farmworkers at the Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac, a vast landholding of the Cojuangco family.

Sadly, up to now, justice eludes at least seven farmworkers and residents who died from bullet wounds and for dozens of others who were left injured. Several others who supported the farmworkers, including former Philippine Independent Church supreme bishop Alberto Ramento, were assassinated by suspected members of President Arroyo's death squads.

Hacienda Luisita, which is as big as the Metro Manila cities of Pasig and Makati combined, continues to evade land reform, hiding behind the gaping loophole called the "stock distribution option" mandated under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program of President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino who belongs to the family that owns it.

Just like other extra-legal executions under the Arroyo administration, not one assassin has been brought to justice, despite pleas from the United Nations special rapporteur Philip Alston, from watchdogs Karapatan, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, and pronouncements from various churches and legislatures worldwide.

Of course, this is not only an issue of extra-legal executions. That in itself is an issue against the Arroyo administration and the Philippine ruling system in general - that it cannot respect the right of people to free expression and to seek redress for just grievances. The issue here is that more than a century after the first Asian revolution that sought to democratize land ownership, the Philippines remains a country dominated by landlords and landlord interests, so much so that massacres are routine ways to deny generations of farmers and farmworkers their due under the principle of genuine land reform.

It is unfortunate that the Hacienda Luisita massacre and the larger issue of the lack of substantial and genuine land reform is being misinterpreted by fans of presidential candidate Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, a scion of the Cojuangco family that owns the hacienda. The continued refusal of the Cojuangcos to let go of the huge hacienda is an issue of social justice and emblematic of the lack of authentic democracy in the country. The massacre of striking workers would continue to haunt the Aquinos, the Cojuangcos and the entire ruling classes until the lands are partitioned and given to the farmworkers and farmers whose generations of work have earned it for themselves under the principle of genuine agrarian reform.

Contrary to the yarn regularly dished out by landlords and their spin doctors, land reform is not a communist or socialist issue. Most if not all advanced capitalist societies undertook land reform as a prerequisite for their economic, social and political development. It frees an entire army of farmers and citizens long captured by feudal bondage, empowers them economically, socially and politically, and lets them participate more fully in nation-building.

The government meanwhile has used the CARP as a pawn to politically and economically punish the late former President Aquino's participation in the broad united front that seeks President Arroyo's removal from office. It supposedly invalidated the SDO option availed by the Cojuangcos. But up to now, the Cojuangcos, thru a holding company, remain the owners of Hacienda Luisita. Up to now, the farmworkers and farmers remain landless and the orphans of the massacre victims continued to be denied justice.

As the Philippines embarks on a search for the next president, it is important to raise the incident of the Hacienda Luisita massacre, the continued existence of similar haciendas and the lack of substantive land reform. It is a democratic issue affecting the rural majority, most of whom belong to families of farmers. It is an issue that cannot be buried by star power or redbaiting can completely bury which is what we have gotten from the camp of Aquino who unfortunately has been silent on most issues, especially this one in which his family is deeply embroiled.

It is a reminder to the public and the electorate that the national crisis worsened by Arroyo goes beyond corruption and that as we search for the next president, we must raise the level of debate to other substantial issues like how to make democracy substantive and substantial. One of them is land reform.

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Aquino leads in latest Philippine presidential poll

MANILA (Reuters) – The son of Philippines democracy icon Corazon "Cory" Aquino continued to lead candidates for the 2010 presidential election, an opinion poll said on Monday.

The release of the latest public opinion survey came on the same day Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino was formally nominated by the small Liberal Party (LP) as its standard-bearer for next May's national and local elections.

The poll by the independent Pulse Asia showed Noynoy was preferred by 44 percent of respondents. Senator Manuel Villar, a billionaire property developer who topped the August 2009 polls, was second with 19 percent.

Senator Francis Escudero, who has dropped out from the race, came in third with 13 percent followed by former president Joseph Estrada with 11 percent.

"With Senator Aquino joining the presidential race, the other personalities who used to be in the lead experienced a decline in their voter preferences," Ana Maria Tabunda, chief research fellow of Pulse Asia Inc, said in a statement on Monday.

"Aquino leads all surveyed presidentiables by a big margin. The reason most often cited in expressing a voting preference for a possible presidential candidate is the latter's clean public record, or alternatively, not being corrupt."

The election is due in May next year and the nomination period is from November 20 until December 1.

The polling agency said the survey was conducted between October 22-30 among 1,800 voting-age respondents. The margin of error was plus/minus 2 percent.

Gilberto Teodoro, who resigned on Monday as defense secretary to concentrate on his campaign as the administration's presidential candidate, was measured at 2 percent, up from 0 percent at the last survey in August. Teodoro and Aquino are second cousins.

Aquino has said he will win the election unless he fell victim to poll fraud or if there were threats to his safety.

"We'll fight lies by sticking to the truth," Aquino told his party convention after formally accepting the nomination for president.

He was joined by his running-mate, Senator Manuel "Mar" Roxas and some of nine senatorial candidates.

At the party convention, Noynoy's party announced major defections to its ranks from the administration. These included former senator Ralph Recto, who served in the Cabinet as economic planning secretary, and his wife, popular film star-turned governor Vilma Santos-Recto.

(Reporting by Manny Mogato; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

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The Philippines will hold its Presidential Elections in May 2010

As the deadline for filing of the certificate of candidacy draws near, there is a lot of speculation as who would be running for the Presidency and who would their running mates be, for the Vice-Presidency. Although a few politicians have already signalled their intentions to run, the majority of them have withheld from the public their intentions, and are waiting until the last day of the filing before publicizing their candidacy.

Senator Manny Villar, the former Senate President, has already made it known that he is a presidential candidate. Also vocal is the former Marikina Mayor and currently Chairman of the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Bayani Fernando.

But whether they admit it or not, most candidates are already running their campaign advertisements, disquised as infomercials (information commercial), because under the rules of the Commission of Elections, it is still illegal to campaign for any candidate.

Since the Philippines have a muti-party form elections, there are many candidates, each vying for their parties' nominations.

Here are some of the possible presidential candidates:

Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan

1. Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan (Political Party: Liberal Party (LP)). The husband of the popular actress Sharon Cuneta.

Jejomar "Jojo" Binay

2. Jejomar "Jojo" Binay (Political Party: LABAN (Lakas ng Baya). The current mayor of the City of Makati.

3. Joseph "Erap" Estrada (Political Party: PMP). Former Philippine president who was convicted of plunder but subsequently pardoned by President Gloria Arroyo.

4. Noli "Kabayan" de Castro (Political Party: Independent). A popular newscaster and journalist and currently the Vice-President of the Philippines.

5. Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro, Jr. A member of the Cojuanco clan. The current Secretary of National Defense.

6. Bayani Fernando (Political Party: Lakas-CMD) - Former Marikina City Mayor and currently Secretary of Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

7. Loren Legarda (Political Party: NPC). A journalist and currently a member of the Senate of the Philippines (Senator).

8. Mike Velarde (Political Party: Buhay). Founder of the El Shaddai Movement.

9. Eddie Villanueva (Political Party: Bangon Pilipinas). Christian evangelist.

10. Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte, Jr (Political Party: Lakas-CMD) - the current Mayor of Quezon City.

11. Eddie "Among Ed" Panlilio (Political Party: Independent) - the Catholic priest governor of Pampanga.

12. Francis "Chiz" Escudero (Political Party: NPC). A member of the Senate of the Philippines (Senator).

13. Jamby Madrigal (Political Party: Geniune Opposition). A member of the Senate of the Philippines.

14. Richard "Dick" Gordon (Political Party: BAGUMBAYAN). A member of the Senate of the Philippines and former mayor of Olongapo City and also a former administrator of the Subic Free Port.

15. Mar Roxas (Political Party: LP). A member of the Senate of the Philippines. To be married to a popular Filipino journalist and newcaster, Korina Sanchez.

16. Miriam Santiago (Political Party: PRP). A member of the Senate of the Philippines.

17. Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes (Political Party: Geniune Opposition). A member of the Senate of the Philippines. Currently incarcerated due to his complicity in the Oakwood Mutiny.

18. Reynato Puno (Political Party: Independent). Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III

19. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III (Liberal Party). Philippine senator and the only son of the former President Corazon Aquino and former Senator Benigno Aquino Jr. The brother of the popular TV host and actress Kris Aquino.

Former Senate President Manuel "Manny" Villar Jr.

20. Manuel "Manny" Villar Jr. (Nacionalista Party). Filipino businessman and former Senate President of the Philippines. The most visible presidential candidate who has announce his presidential aspiration years back. His ad campaigns have been going on for quite sometime. Seen by most as using his money for his utmost advantage in the coming presidential election.

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Philippine Elections 2010 Resources

• Political Parties of the Philippines - A comprehensive list of the different political parties. It contains links to the respective article on each party. Wikepedia, the free encyclopedia.
• Senate of the Philippines - Official website of the Senate of the Philippines that you can consult for more information on senators that are possible canditates to the presidency.
• Commission on Elections - Official Website of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) of the Republic of the Philippines. Please be a little patient with their website. It is election period and it could be swamped with visitors and could become really slow.

Philippine Elections 2010 Video

A Call for Vigilance to Avoid Failure of Elections by Winnie Monsod

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ELECTION NEWS UPDATE

02 SEPTEMBER 2009

• Senator Mar Roxas has announce his withdrawal from the 2010 Presidential Elections to give way for the candidacy of LP party mate Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino, the son of former President Corazon Aquino.
• Everyone is waiting for a confirmation from Senator Aquino who is scheduled to give a news conference.
• Senator Benigno Aquino held a press conferance at the Club Manila but did not confirm any decision to run for the presidency. He is going to a Carmelite reatreat until the weekend and promised to make an announcement on a later date.

15 SEPTEMBER 2009

• Noynoy Aquino has accepted the challenge to run for the Presidency last week. His running mate is still unofficial, although people are expecting that it would be his partymate Mar Roxas.
• The Nacionalist Party (NP) is about to hold its convention today and might announce it candidates today.

15 October 2009 Election Update

From Malaysian Mirror, http://www.malaysianmirror.com:

AQUINO LEADING PHILIPPINE PRESIDENTIAL RACE - MANILA, Oct 14 - The son of revered former Philippine President Cory Aquino has taken a commanding lead among potential candidates for the 2010 presidential elections, an opinion poll said today. The poll by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino favoured by 60 per cent of respondents. Senator Manuel Villar, in the lead in opinion polls before Aquino announced his candidacy last month, was second with 37 per cent. Read more...

Ex-Philippine President Estrada To Run Again in 2010 MANILA, Philippines : Wednesday, 14 October 2009 16:31 - Former Philippine leader Joseph Estrada, ousted in a popular uprising in 2001 and later convicted of graft, said Wednesday he would run again for president in next year's elections. The announcement by the charismatic action movie star will excite his loyal fans, but observers said it was also likely to create constitutional controversies and dilute opposition efforts to oust the ruling coalition. "Yes, I will run," Estrada, 72, told AFP, when asked to confirm local press reports of his decision.

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