#SONA2024 #PeoplesSONA
Under the “Bagong Pilipinas” (New Philippines) theme of President Marcos Jr.’s regime, there have been no significant changes in economic issues. Unemployment among workers remains high, farmers still lack land, and extrajudicial killings, a hallmark of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s regime, persist. Amid the ongoing crisis, the Marcos Jr. administration is selling out the country’s economy to foreign interests through Charter Change, compromising our sovereignty, and allowing the entry of U.S. military forces into the Philippines under various agreements like the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). These agreements enable the U.S. to use our territory to demonstrate its dominance in the Asia-Pacific region, further risking regional stability.
This flagrant and lopsided treaties of the Philippines with the United States do not only aim to secure the latter’s economic and political control over the country, but also seize the opportunity to wage a proxy war against China. The US imperialist is taking advantage of the on-going geopolitical conflict in West Philippines Sea, fanning hateful sentiments against China, ultimately pushing its imperialist agenda in Asia. This malicious instigation of war threatens regional peace and ultimately leads to the demise of the Filipino masses.
As President Marcos Jr. prepares for his State of the Nation Address on July 22, 2023 to boast about his supposed achievements, various democratic organizations, human rights groups, and the international community are ready to express their discontent with the Marcos regime.
Here are the protests you can join tomorrow in the Asia-Pacific region:
Australia
Melbourne: July 21
Perth: July 21
Hongkong: July 21
Japan: July 21
New Zealand
Auckland: July 21
South Korea: July 21
Taiwan: July 21
Southeast Asia (Online): July 21
