The Ecumenical Bishops Forum (EBF) condemned what it called excessive police force against protesting farmers and urged authorities to protect the rights to peaceful assembly, freedom of expression, and press freedom.
In a pastoral statement issued Oct. 20, the EBF said the Church stood in solidarity with peasants pressing demands for land, livelihood, food, and justice.
“In keeping with our Christian convictions, we strongly condemn the excessive use of force by PNP personnel, as evidenced by their aggressive treatment of the protesting farmers,” the bishops said.
The statement came a day after police dismantled part of a farmers’ protest camp outside the Department of Agrarian Reform in Quezon City.
The Amihan National Federation of Peasant Women said several delegates and supporters were injured during the Oct. 19 incident, which took place while farmers were holding a dialogue with DAR officials.
The group said farmers and peasant women had set up protest camps outside the DAR and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources as part of a week of activities marking Peasant Month.
On Oct. 21, peasant women joined farmers, fisherfolk, Indigenous Peoples and other sectors in Mendiola, Manila, to press demands for land, livelihood, democratic rights and national sovereignty.
The EBF urged the Quezon City Police Department and the Philippine National Police to respect constitutional and civil rights during public assemblies.
“We call on them to uphold the constitutional and civil rights of individuals and groups to peaceful assembly, freedom of expression, and freedom of the press, as well as the principle of civilian authority over the state’s security forces,” the bishops said.
“These fundamental rights are guaranteed by the Constitution and must be respected, protected, and upheld at all times,” they added.
The bishops also cited the impact of El Niño on farming communities.
“The devastating effects of El Niño have deepened the suffering of farmers and ordinary families, threatening livelihoods, food security, and the very survival of vulnerable communities,” the bishops said.
Amihan said compensation for damages caused by what it described as Super El Niño and the worsening food crisis was among the issues raised by farmers.
The EBF criticized what it described as inadequate government assistance to affected communities.
“The government’s failure to provide timely, adequate, and meaningful assistance is not merely a policy failure; it is a moral failure that demands accountability,” the bishops said.
The forum said the demands raised by peasants went beyond immediate relief.
“As a Church, we affirm that the peasants’ struggle for land, livelihood, food, and justice is a struggle for life itself,” it added.
Amihan said protesters were also demanding the right of agrarian reform beneficiaries to till their land and opposing land grabbing, land reclassification, and land-use conversion of farmlands, haciendas, and agricultural land in Negros, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, and Bicol.
The group also opposed Pax Silica, the Luzon Economic Corridor, megadam projects in the Cordillera region, renewable energy projects and mining operations that it said threatened agricultural communities and natural resources.
The bishops called on the government to address the farmers’ grievances and provide urgent assistance.
“We call on the government to listen to their grievances, fulfill its responsibility to the people, and deliver concrete and urgent assistance to those most affected,” the EBF said.
“When the poor cry out, the Church cannot remain silent. We stand with the peasants in their peaceful assertion of their rights, trusting that faith must find expression in solidarity, justice, and courageous action,” it added.
