Amid activities and protests for Peasant Month, state forces have escalated its harassment against Hacienda Luisita farmers in recent days. They target the Alyansa ng mga Manggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda Luisita (AMBALA) members.

On October 18 at 9pm, four (4) suspected 31st Mechanized Infantry Battalion soldiers raided the home of AMBALA chairperson Francisco Dizon in Barangay Mapalacsiao, Tarlac City. The suspects wore civilian clothes and masks, and tried to abduct Dizon.

Dizon’s neighbors and AMBALA members immediately responded to drive away the soldiers and ensure their chairperson’s safety. AMBALA also immediately coordinated with barangay officials to report the harassment.

Today, October 20, police and 31st MIB blocked the vehicles of Hacienda Luisita farmers who were on their way to a gathering to commemorate Peasant Month.

“Karapatan Central Luzon strongly condemns the state for blatantly harassing mass organizations of Hacienda Luisita farm workers and peasants who legitimately struggle for land, housing, human rights, and justice,” the group said.

AMBALA and the farmers of the 6,453-hectare Hacienda Luisita have long been fighting for their right to the land. According to the Union of Agricultural Workers, bogus land reform programs in the past decades only led to corporations and landlords seizing ownership of the hacienda instead of distributing it to the tillers of the land.