Chapter 15
Urban Industrial Mission,
Moved to 6
Municipalities in Central Panay
The CPBC expanded Urban Industrial Mission (UIM)
project in Iloilo was implemented in
mid- 1980. From our UIM pilot project in Hinobaan, Negros Occidental, most of our
experiences were brought to the
6 municipalities in Central
Iloilo - Duenas, Paasi, Calinog.
Bingawan, Lambunao, in Iloilo and Tapas, Capiz.
From
1972, when martial law was declared to 1985,
Kabataang Makabayan, despite many
of its members had been arrested and sent to Camp Delgado Stockades and in Negros Occidental Stockades, KM continued to get members from students in
colleges and high schools in Western
Visayas.
Young people, both men and
women, students and out-of-school-youths,
joined Discussion Groups (DGs) in the cities, munipaliities and villages
in the countrysides led by KM activists.
Many
of them joined the struggles against
martial law. Some joined the New People’s Army. Some became cadres of the
Communist Party of the Philippines. Others continued their participations in
activist movements for social and
political transformation. Some Catholics and Aglipayan priests, Nuns,
Catholic Sisters and
Baptist pastors joined the Christians
for National Liberation (CNL). They
became member of the National
Democratic Fronts of the Philippines (NDFP).
NDFP was the
coordinating body of different revolutionary movement in the
country, that include the Communist Party of the
Philippines (CPP), the New Peoples Army (NPA), Moro Resistance & Liberation
Organization (MRLO), MAKIBAKA, a womens revolutionary organization, Christians
for National Liberation (CNL), Kabataang Makabayan (KM) and other
revolutionary organizations in the country.
As we implement
some the CPBC’s development projects, then,
known as New Frontier Ministries
from 1977 to 1985, we have seen the growing strength of the CPP and the NPA
operating in many villages in the areas of UIM operations – Duenas, Lambunao,
Calinog, Bingawan, Passi in Iloilo and in
Tapaz, Capiz.
I heard Josil Jaen, former KM member
and his friends were operating in
the hinterland villages of Calinog. Maria Luisa Posa and her groups were working
in Lambunao. Pastor Hortada and his
group were working in the hinterland
villages of Tapaz.
Charles De la Fuente
and his friends were in Libacao and
other towns in Aklan. They have
strengthened their organizations, and the revolutionary movements can be felt
in the different hinterland villages of
Panay and Negros Occidental.
Then, the movement
organized in Iloilo, the “white areas”
in the
municipalities surrounding Iloilo City – San Miguel, Pavia, Sta. Barbara, Leganes, Zarraga, Barotac Nuevo and Dumangas. In the barangays of these municipalities, the NPA expanded trying to build their organizations in the villages. They
were, I think, starting the
revolutionary theory of Chairman Mao, of circling the cities from the
countrysides.
By this time, the
military has become very aggressive and deadly. Our personnel in the CPBC development projects
and our organized associations among villages, were subjected to harrasments. Some of our community workers
and organizers were questioned by the military.
The municipalities targeted as
base for the UIM ministries
were barangays with
heavy sugar cane plantations. At the center of this areas, 3 Sugar Centrals operating, two in in Passi and one Calinog. It was the ideal
area for Urban Industrial Ministries.
Our UIM project had
a component of 5 full time staff. Pastor Job Santiago, a graduate of the
College of Theology was the team
leader. With him were Hernani Bautista, with training on
agriculture. Hector Belloga, Barangay Captain of Poblacion, Bingawan and
Bonifacio Castronuevo, a an education graduate.
They were the community organizers and helped in community organizing, trainings, livelihood project for communities,
conscientizations and labor education.
A special training
on labor education and organizing were
organized for the sugar cane plantions workers.
They need to learn basic laws,
labor laws and laws on human rights.
These knowledge were needed for
community leaders in the sugar industry.
I provided the initial training with my experiences in labor educations
and organizing, from the Philippine Associations of Nationalistic
Employees, Laborers and Farmers Union
(PANELFU), few years earlier.
I shared with the staff the trainings and
exposures I learned from the NCCP with
Rev. Henry Aguilan, -UIM Director
who exposed me to some labor
situations in Metro Manila. I also learned some skills from Ms. Jorgette Honculada Malonzo, an official
of National Federation of Labor
(NFL), headed by Ibarra (Bong) Malonzo
in Mindanao and Visayas.
NFL heads the
labor union in Maarinduque Mining Corporations in Sipalay Mines. She
helped provide me with trainings on
new approaches on labor unionism
in Manila. She also recommended me to a union
officer of Sipalay Mines, to
see how mining operates and learn the life of workers
in the mining industry..
To further
prepare the UIM staff for effective
project implementions, I asked Rev. Edwin Lopez, General
Secretary permission and requested two staff of the National Federation of
Sugar Workers (NFSW) in Bacolod City for a one
week live-in training at Camp Higher Ground, Barotac Viejo. After this
training, I requested them to further
assist the UIM staff for a two- days
assessment and re-directions
processes every month, for the next
3 months.
These helped
ground the staff on the demands
of UIM project implementations. The two persons sent by NFSW to help CPBC in
training UIM staff, were veterans of the long Sugar Central strikes that nearly
paralyzed the sugar central in La Carlota City sometimes in 1976 to 1978.
The CPBC project was supported financially by EZE of West Germany under
Hienz Havercorn, in cooperation with the
World Council of Churches (WCC) in Geneva. We have a strong financial resources. With proper
management, we will be able to build strong works in the villages –
education, livelihood traiings w/ pigs,
goats and chickens dispersals, fresh fish culture, cooperative educations,
labor education, labor organizing and practical farming and animal raising technology transfers.
In 3 years time, from 1982
-1984, UIM worked hard to develop a strong core group
in the 6 municipalities targeted for the project implementations. A core groups
of about 1000 farmers and sugar cane workers in 100 barangays in 6 municipalities with training on different aspects of
developments and advocacy works.
Our UIM staff in Central Panay proved efficient in there works - labor education, organizing and community development, livelihood training, cooperatives developments. Starting our work with 3 villages in each of the 6 municipalities, in about 2 years. we have established core groups in 120 villages in the 6 municipalities.
By that time, we
have developed nearly 1000 farmers and
sugar cane workers, who were involved in our education, community organizing,
livelihood projects on rice farming, corn farming, pig, goat and chicken
raising, fresh fish culture and bananas, fruits and vegetable farming cultures.
Our training were held in the villages where some 15 to 20
farmers and sugar cane workers were recruited, both men, women and youth. The first level of our
training were on socio-political
awareness and conscientisation.
After we have developed their social and political awareness, we started
our community organizing. We slowly and gradually developed them in a farmers associations. About 3
seminars were held, before the participants could be received as members of the
association.
The officers of the associations were elected to provide the group with
the needed leadership structures that would enable them to function with
minimum assistance from the UIM staff.
This 2nd level of our
training were held in the Convention
Baptist Churches in Lambunao, in
Bingawan, Calinog, Duenas and in Tapaz.
The UIM project - education, conscientizations, community organizing, training on on
different livelihood projects labor
education. labor organizing and technology transfers. transfers covers
less than 40% barangays in the 6 municipalites. But our training and influences reaches to 3
other nearby barangays, enabling us to reach some 80% of the villages in 6 municipalites in Central Iloilo.
We made special training for livelihood developments. These were on
rice farming culture, small corn farming, pig raising, goat raising, native
chickens raising, fresh fish culture and bananas, fruits and vegetable farming.
Our staff with agriculture training, Hernani Bautista held
continued educations on this special group of people.
Atty. Cesar Beloria, was requested to serve as Resource Person for Legal
and Labor education. He helped those working in the sugar cane industry gain
knowledge and skills to stand and fight
for their rights – specially on the wages paid to workers by the owners of the
sugar cane plantations.
Rev. Eliseo Fantilaga, was requested to help in the education,
conscientizations and training on social and political awareness for officers of
organized communities.
We organized farmers associations and cooperatives in some of the
villages. We saw the force and strength of an organized and trained farmers
and sugar cane workers.
The 3rd level of our
training, involving officers, training and developing their skills so that they
can become Resource Persons in the
different villages were new works are bing started and were expanding. This 3rd level training, mostly
two or three days, were
held in some beaches in Iloilo City and in Oton.
Unfortunately, our education, skills training,
conscientizations and organizing works put us on the maps of the military as a subversive group. The same with our staff at
URM in Antique. The military began to think that the UIM
involved in seminars were
helping train new rebels forces
that were growing and developing
in Central Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan and Antique.
After we have
undertook education programs, we provided
livelihood projects for the community
people, both members of the church and communities. We started chicken
dispersals with 6 female chickens and 1 roaster. These were chickens that will lay eggs in 5
months time. We started also goat dispersals and pig dispersals among the
Baptist church members and the community people.
The pig dispersals
were mostly female piglets, we hoped to raise for breading. It will be raised
until it gave birth. And we request the caretaker, to give 2 piglets after, and
the mother pig and other piglets will be
owned by the raisers. We hoped,
as the years go by, our pig projects, will reached many residents of the churches
and communities.
Families have
started to build small fish ponds near their
homes. We provided them with fish fingerlings. We identified families
who built small fish ponds to serve as training ground for fish technology transfer. As we worked and reached out to more farmers in the
villages, the UIM staff and officers of some barangay associations were subjected to harrassments by elements of the military.
Many community young people and some members of the the Convention Baptist Churches in the nearby municipalites of Bingawan and Janiuay,
Iloilo and municipalities of Tapaz,
Cuartero & Dumarao in Capiz have joined the NPA and the
revolutionary movements in Pana
They joined the movement that called
the struggle for change. They
have stood, resisted and fought against
President Marcos martial law regime, fighting to help built a society that were
free and progressive, communities that were free from control of
feudalism and US imperialism.
As I looked deep into the growing conflicts in the communities, I looked on the faces of the staff of
UIM staff. I looked at the faces of the
staffs – Rev. Job Santiago, Hernani Bautista, Hector Belloga and Bonifacio
Castronuevo.
I sat down. I
looked in the areas where we were operates. I thought of the dangers faced by the staff,
doing labor education and organizing
under martial law carries dangers. I
felt a strange tremours in my heart. I prayed. I asked for God guidance. “Lord, the situations is hard. We are
afraid. The risked were growing.
I feel the burden and possible
dangers for our staff. Lord, please teach
us what to do.”
We continued with
our work. On February 28-29, 1984, we have a UIM seminar on Cabudian Baptist Church, Duenas, Iloilo. We started our seminar at 9:30 -5:00 PM. Dr.
Domingo Diel, Jr. was our Resource Speacker from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM. He left
immediately for Iloilo City. At 5:30 PM, the military put a bamboo blockade on
the road from Cabudian to Highway. At 6:00 PM, Hernani Bautista, Hector Belloga
and Bonifacio Castronuevo passed. They were going to Calinog market to buy some
supplies.
But they were
stopped by the military. The were brought to there Constabulary headquarters at
the back of Calinog Municipal Hall. They were detained until the following day.
Hernani Bautista was separed and undeegone hard military questionings. He told
me, a 45 caliber pistol was put on his head. And fired. But he was it was
intended to make him afraid.
And, again on July
1984, our UIM and Sacada
Development staffs and seminar
participants, were raided by the military in Guevara Beach, Oton, Iloilo at
1:00 PM and brought to Camp Delgado, in
Iloilo City. Sometimes, we will share the stories of these raids, the dangers
and hardship, mental and physical sufferings, felt by the staff and the seminar participants.
That’s the price
that have to be paid. Working for equality, freedom and justice has a price. And often, the price
were hard.
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