Manila (July 4, 2005) - Joseph de Jesus, a 19-year old student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and studying to become a media liaison for his organization Teatrong Bayan [People's Theater] and writer-contributor for Manila Indymedia, was arrested by elements of the Western Police District after he covered a protest rally at the US Embassy in Manila.

De Jesus, who admitted to joining rallies in school against issues of budget cuts and commercialized education, was at the US Embassy to cover a protest rally, and to publish the said story at the Manila Indymedia website. He was surprised that the police arrested him instead of the protesters on charges of resisting arrest and possession of subversive materials.

Link: Manila IMC

De Jesus, who admitted to joining rallies in school against issues of budget cuts and commercialized education, was at the US Embassy to cover a protest rally, and to publish the said story at the Manila Indymedia website. He was surprised that the police arrested him instead of the protesters on charges of resisting arrest and possession of subversive materials.

This reporter asked De Jesus via mobile phone 'what are the documents he was carrying at the time of the arrest,' De Jesus muttered that it was the press releases given to him by rallyists. At present, he is still being investigated at the WPD. Atty. Virgie Suarez-Pinlac, known for her fiery defense of tax scam whistleblower Acsa Ramirez and the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP) are already aiding De Jesus to counter the charges filed against him.

The Teatrong Bayan group immediately condemned the arrest of their member 'saying that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's machineries, the police and military, are all bent in curbing any dissent given the people's growing dissatisfaction with her rule. The raid by police and military of a printing press in Quezon City a few weeks ago on charges of printing 'seditious posters' are but an example on the clampdown.

The protest rally today was led by militant students from the group Youth for Nationalism and Democracy (YND) where they picketed the US Embassy today, in commemoration of the Fil-American Friendsip Day, as they condemned the existing 'slave-master' relations between RP and the US.

YND claimed that 'only oppression and exploitation exists between the RP and US with existing various trade, economic and security agreements between the two countries, which only strengthened the country's dependence upon the US despite our so-called independence.

De Jesus added that 'the police was unable to prevent the protesters from throwing rotten eggs at the US Embassy seal. I suppose that is why they ganged up on me instead, because I know they recognize me as a protester from past rallies

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