May Day rallies demand Macapagal-Arroyo's ouster
Militant workers' organizations demanded the ouster of the Macapagal-Arroyo regime during commemorations of International Workers' Day and celebrations of the centenary of the workers' movement in the Philippines on May 1. About 75,000 people participated in rallies led by Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) nationwide. Macapagal-Arroyo was assailed as the main enemy of the working class and the people. BAYAN declared that the protest action on May 1 was "the beginning of the end" of Macapagal-Arroyo's regime.
In Metro Manila, up to 37,000 workers affiliated with KMU gathered in Mendiola, including delegations from Southern Tagalog and Central Luzon.
In Bacolod City, some 6,000 workers under KMU-National Federation of Sugar Workers rallied at the city center.
In Bukidnon, 6,000 workers, mostly sugar plantation laborers and BAYAN members, successfully rallied at Valencia City despite military harassment.
In Bicol, thousands of workers and other sectors gathered in the cities of Naga (5,000) and Legazpi (3,000). Organizations of peasants, government employees, drivers and others expressed their solidarity for the workers.
In Leyte, up to 5,000 people rallied in the cities of Tacloban, Ormoc and Maasin and six other towns in the island.
In Cebu City, 3,000 members of KMU, BAYAN and GABRIELA rallied at the Metro Gaisano junction road. Drivers of public utility vehicles also staged a half-day strike.
In Iloilo City, some 3,000 members of KMU, BAYAN and the National Priests Organization of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente gathered at Barangay Lapuz Norte in La Paz, where the militant Federacion Obreras de Filipinas (FOF) was established in 1929. FOF founder Jose Ma. Nava was honored during the rally.
In Davao City, thousands of militant workers were blocked when they tried to march towards the Matina campus of the University of Mindanao where Macapagal-Arroyo was giving a speech before leaders and members of yellow unions. They held their program at the nearby Ateneo de Davao.
In Baguio City, hundreds of members of KMU and the Cordillera People's Alliance launched a march-rally along Session Road.
In Southern Tagalog, hundreds of workers rallied in Lucena and at the Cavite Export Processing Zone.
In Central Luzon, workers marched to Clark Air Base in Pampanga.
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