Two University of the Philippines-Diliman (UPD) student councils strongly condemned a new agreement between the UPD College of Human Kinetics (CHK) and the Philippine National Police Special Action Force (PNP-SAF). The representative of the UPD Office of the Chancellor officially signed the agreement, on behalf of the UPD CHK, on January 27.

The agreement shocked the UPD CHK Student Council because the college administration held no consultation with students about it. In a joint statement of the council and the UPD University Student Council, they branded the deal as not “neutral” and said it endangers the university.

“It legitimizes cooperation with an institution repeatedly implicated in harassment, human rights violations, and the suppression of youth and student activism,” they said. The two councils added that this must be denounced, since UP has a duty to defend academic freedom, protect dissent, and ensure the university remains a safe space for critical thought.

To express their dismay and position against the agreement, the councils held a dialogue with the UPD CHK administration on January 29. The college administration insisted that the collaboration between UPD CHK and PNP-SAF was purely “academic and research-based.”

According to the dialogue, discussions on the possible signing of the agreement began almost three years ago. The college administration also said the training sessions would be held at the PNP-SAF facility in Laguna and not on the UP Diliman campus. The UPD CHK also admitted that it failed to consult students regarding the agreement.

Meanwhile, the dialogue revealed that other state security institutions had previously approached the UPD CHK for similar agreements. Among them were the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard, which sought CHK’s expertise in developing training manuals, assessments, and physical programs.

The UPD CHK agreed in the dialogue that it would review and reassess the agreement and issue a clarification statement considering academic freedom and students’ rights. The councils also secured the college’s commitment that they would take part in reviewing the results and implications of the said agreement.

However, the UP Diliman councils and students continue to demand that the agreement be scrapped completely. “As one community, we must remain vigilant in protecting our democratic spaces and ensuring that the welfare of students is never compromised,” the two councils said.

UP students remain doubly wary of the entry of PNP and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) forces on campus, since it has become freely allowed after the government unilaterally terminated the UP-DND Accord on January 15, 2021.

In a statement from the UP Office of the Student Regent on January 15, five years after the accord’s termination, it said their efforts and struggle to reinstate it continue. “The Accord was a collective assertion by iskolars ng Bayan (scholars of the people) that education must never again be militarized,” it declared.

Their concerns also included the recent filing by the PNP of a complaint at the Department of Justice against UP students and leaders who joined anti-corruption protests.