The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) – Negros condemns the arrest of NDFP peace consultant and NDFP Negros Spokesperson Ka Frank Fernandez, 71, along with his wife, Cleofe Lagtapon, 66, and their companion Gee-Ann Perez, 20. We denounce the trumped-up charges filed against them and strongly demand that the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and its state forces present them to their legal counsel and family. Furthermore, they must be immediately released on the basis of justice, propriety and for humanitarian considerations.

Ka Frank was with his wife in Laguna to seek medical attention. Considering their old age and the status of his health, the military and police are ridiculous in planting firearms and explosives. This has been a protocol for state forces to crimininalize NDFP consultants who are actually assured safety while performing their duties as peace consultants through the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG).

According to reports, Ka Frank and his companions were arrested on March 23, 2019 around 5 o’clock in the morning but up to now their lawyers and family have no access to them. This is an outright violation of their human rights. The Filipino people is well aware of the AFP and PNP’s brutal and merciless nature. Ka Frank and his companions are in real danger of physical and psychological torture.

Ka Frank and his companions’ arrest along with the imprisonment of other NDFP consultants stink of the desperation of the US-controlled Armed Forces of the Philippines to sabotage the peace process.

Every move of Duterte and his cohorts exposes their single-mindedness in instating Duterte’s fascist dictatorship and disposing of just and lasting peace.

Duterte’s clones in the military and police mistake the arrest of Ka Frank as a setback for the revolutionary movement. If we recall the 2016 Peace Forum held in Negros Island, Ka Frank himself clearly put things in perspective, “the people know that the revolutionary movement is alive, not because of Frank Ferndandez, but the masses keep the revolution alive.”

Thus, Ka Frank’s arrest will only further ignite the fervor of every peace-loving Filipino and, of course, all revolutionary forces to intensify the fight against Duterte’s fascism and terrorism.###