As VietCatholic reported on increased religious persecution in the Philippines, here are the latest updates:
The nuns of the Rural Missionary Society of the Philippines (RMP) have strongly denied any connection to terrorism after facing charges brought by the government last month under the anti-terrorism law. argumentative.
These Catholic nuns have joined the RMP since 1969 to assist and educate the poor in rural areas in the Philippines. The RMP itself is not a religious order or a congregation, its members (men and women religious) are still members of their order or diocese (if priests).
UCA News reported August 16 that 16 people - including five nuns - have been charged by the Philippine Department of Justice with funding the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed force, the New People's Army. (NPA), considered a terrorist organization by the Philippine government.
The CPP and NPA were also designated as terrorist groups by the US Department of State in 2002. The CPP has been fighting the Philippine government in a communist uprising since 1969.
Speaking late last month, the nuns said they care for and educate the poor about their basic rights and do not recruit or raise funds for any communist groups.
“We have raised this on many occasions before. We are not enemies of the government. We have not supported or helped any terrorist group. Our projects directly support the people,” according to the August 30 statement.
“As missionaries, we are unrepentant and steadfast in our determination to work in poor areas, even when these areas are militarized and in conflict,” the sisters said. armed."
The Philippine Department of Justice froze some of the association's bank accounts in 2019 after two people testified that the RMP had transferred funds to the CPP. The RMP has always denied any connection to communist activities in the Philippines, saying its educational mission is concerned with teaching the poor about their rights and not about communism.
"This is absurd. We are not a communist organization or a communist peripheral front. We do not fund terrorist activities through our projects. Projects Our files are all fully documented, audited and updated," Sister Elenita Belardo, RMP's country coordinator, told Philippine online newspaper Rappler in March 2019.
UCA News also notes that “red-tag” or “red-baiting” practices have been common in the Philippines since the 1960s. UCA News writes: “ Red tagging” is the “malicious” practice of labeling an individual or group as “terrorist” or “communist” simply because they are critical of the government. Human rights groups have accused the Philippines Department of Justice of rushing the process and not allowing the nuns to defend themselves.
The Rural Missionary Society of the Philippines (RMP) said on August 30 that it "will neither limit its operations nor be deterred by new attacks on them."
“We will not shrink back, even if we are scared. God gives us strength and wisdom, helps us to walk faster and ensures our safety… Those who seek to undermine our ministry by slandering it support or funding 'terrorism', which should be held accountable; Their slander will only increase suffering and poverty in marginalized (rural) communities. "
The anti-terrorism law against which the nuns are accused was introduced under President Rodrigo Duterte, in power from 2016 to June 2022. The Catholic bishops of the Philippines have harshly criticized the anti-terrorism law. , likening it to the national security law that China has imposed in Hong Kong since 2020 to tighten control by criminalizing broad definitions of "sedition" and "collusion with world powers". foreign force”.
To reiterate, Duterte, with his brutal tactics in tackling drug-related crime in the Philippines, has come into open conflict with the Church on multiple occasions. In a December 2019 speech, former President Duterte said that people should "kill and rob" Catholic bishops, because "this bunch of idiots serve no purpose - all that they To do is to criticize”. He also called bishops "fools" and "sons of prostitutes" and told people they should stay at home and pray rather than attend church services.