May 2, 2016, 10:48p.m. – THE BLOODY clash in Kidapawan City that left three people dead and more than a hundred wounded was a result of lack of government preparation for the El Niño dry spell as well as neglect of the agriculture sector, advocates claimed.
Various groups spoke of the injustice experienced by farmers in Cotabato during the “Rise In Peace: Understanding the Plight of the Kidapawan Farmers” forum at the Education Auditorium earlier today.
Feny Cosico, secretary general of the Advocates of Science and Technology for the People, said the government failed to prepare for El Niño. “Hindi po natin pwedeng tanggapin ang sinasabi ng gobyerno na force majeure [ang El Niño] o God’s will. Napag-aaralan po ito sa tamang panahon para mapaghandaan ng gobyerno kung ano ang dapat niyang gawin,” she said.
Antonio Flores of Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas-Southern Mindanao criticized the national government and Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza for mishandling the crisis. He said the violent dispersal of the farmers’ protest in Kidapawan was rooted in the government’s failed agrarian reform program.
Carlo Manalo of the International League of People’s Struggles-Philippines meanwhile said the media failed to sustain coverage of the farmers’ plight. “Sunod-sunod na ang trahedya sa Mindanao at bihira lang natin itong malaman dito sa Manila, pero araw-araw po `tong nararanasan ng ating mga kapwa Pilipino sa Mindanao,” he said.
Kidapawan farmers also shared their personal experience during the violent dispersal.
Last April 1, an estimated 5,000 farmers were violently dispersed as they protested the lack of government aid amid El Niño. Three people were killed and 116 people were wounded.
The forum was organized by UST Simbahayan and UST UNICEF Volunteers. Roy Abrahmn D.R. Narra
