Transfer of Jovito Palparan denounced. Erlinda Cadapan and Concepcion Empeño, mothers of the disappeared activists Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño, went to the Supreme Court on June 15 to demand disclosure of the whereabouts of former general Jovito Palparan. Palparan was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole in 2018 for kidnapping and serious illegal detention of the two activists. Together with Karapatan, the mothers questioned Palparan’s disappearance from New Bilibid Prison after legal notices were returned marked “transferred to BuCor-Baguio” and “PMA Baguio.” The NBP, however, claimed he is merely in a “hospital.”

Navotas City fisherfolk protest anew against reclamation. Fisherfolk in Navotas City again protested on June 8 to mark World Oceans Day and denounce reclamation projects in Manila Bay. Pamalakaya-Navotas sharply criticized the 650-hectare Navotas Coastal Bay Reclamation Project pushed by the local government and San Miguel Corporation subsidiary Argonbay Construction. The group said the project endangers the livelihoods, rights, and lives of residents, including threats of eviction, flooding, and environmental destruction.

Clamor for justice for deceased ADMU student basketball players. Students and faculty of Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) in Quezon City staged a walkout on June 19 to demand justice for basketball players Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili. The two died after drowning in Dipaculao, Aurora on June 8 during a team training activity. ADMU students, teachers, and professors called on the university administration for transparency, responsibility, apology, and justice to the victims’ families. Progressive groups and students held a program and candle-lighting earlier on June 10.

Freedom for Mary Jane Veloso demanded anew. Led by Migrante International,various groups protested at the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong City on June 19 to demand the immediate release of Mary Jane Veloso. The action coincided with Veloso’s statement regarding the human trafficking, illegal recruitment, and estafa case she filed in 2015 against her recruiter. It marked the first time she was able to give her testimony.