Dear Colleagues, comrades and friends,
We are writing to you on an issue of urgent concern regarding Professor Walden Bello.
Recently, a political party founded by Sara Duterte (daughter of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte), incumbent Mayor of Davao City, and now vice-presidential candidate for the 2022 national elections—unfoundedly and maliciously labeled Walden as a “narco-politician.”
This attack is clearly intended to silence dissent and undermine free speech. This is not unprecedented under the Duterte regime. Anyone who dares to speak truth to power and criticize the administration and its allies are harassed, or worse, killed. As defenders of human rights and democracy, it is imperative that we speak out against this politically-motivated attack against Walden.
We invite you to sign on this statement of support for our comrade Walden Bello amidst the political harassment he is facing anew in the context of the Philippine elections.
Please take a moment to look at the full statement here for more details about the incident, and for endorsing the statement.
Let us stand together against all forms of harassment through political labeling/tagging!
The deadline for sign-ons is Friday, 08 April 2022. The statement will be published the day after.
Thank you, Focus on the Global South
