📷Pinoy Weekly
One year ago, veteran labor organizer Jude Thaddeus Fernandez, 67, was murdered by police forces in his residence in Binangonan, Rizal. Despite the statement of then-Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin that the Ferdinand Marcos Jr government would carry out a thorough and impartial investigation into the case, Fernandez’ murder remains unsolved to this day.
The Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) claimed it was serving Fernandez an arrest warrant when he fought back. In truth, the arrest warrant did not contain Fernandez’ name. Fernandez has never carried a gun in his organizing work – whether in Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, or Metro Manila and its environs.
Not only was Fernandez murdered by police forces, his remains were also denied to his family, friends and colleagues in the labor movement for days. This only supports the analysis that Fernandez, a labor organizer who belonged to the elderly and needed medical attention, was targeted for murder and persecution.
Fernandez is the 72nd victim of labor-related killings since 2016. His murder is the fourth after the International Labour Organization High-Level Tripartite Mission to the Philippines was held in January 2023 and recommended that the government investigate labor-related murder cases.
Fernandez was an iskolar ng bayan, a student of the University of the Philippines Los Baños who dedicated his life to improving the lives of workers and the Filipino people and fighting for social change. We condemn the government’s effort to make him a negative example for youths and students who want to follow his path. He should be given recognition, not persecuted and murdered.
On the first anniversary of Fernandez’ murder, the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) unites with his family, friends, and comrades in the labor movement in calling for justice. Former PNP-CIDG chief Major General Romeo Caramat Jr. and former PNP chief General Benjamin C. Acorda Jr. should be investigated for Fernandez’ murder.
Pres. Marcos Jr should make unequivocal statements and take decisive action so that the murderers of labor activists are held accountable, and that the murders of labor activists are stopped once and for all. So far, his statements of commitment to labor and human rights have not been translated into an enabling environment for labor organizing.
Everyone who fights for labor and human rights in the Philippines, among organizations both in the country and outside, must not rest until the perpetrators of Fernandez’ murder are held accountable for their crimes. This crime, after all, is not just against a person, a family, a group of friends, or even the labor movement; it is a crime against Filipino workers and people. (PR)
