Griefen Arlegui and Reynaldo Viernes Jr, known as the Angat 2, walked free after 6 years of imprisonment, after the court finally dismissed the case of illegal possession of firearms and explosives the CIDG filed against them.

The two young students were arrested on April 13, 2019 in Angat, Bulacan while hanging posters for Bayan Muna Partylist and Neri Colmenares. They were subjected to torture for three days before they were surfaced and charged with fabricated cases. The two were Kadamay organizers based in Pandi, Bulacan at the time.

“The poor are often victims of police’ modus of filing fabricated cases and intimidation, spanning from the fake War on Drugs and War on Terror of the Duterte administration and continuing under the leadership of Marcos Jr,” Kadamay said today, February 5. The case of Angat 2 is just one example of the state’s attack on poor activists who stand up for their rights, it said.

Kadamay thanked the lawyers and paralegals who worked to free the two.

“Though release was gained, Kadamay continues to call for the release of other political prisoners,” it said. “Although 6 years of their youth were wasted in imprisonment, they remain determined to act and advance the rights of other poor people.”