“Occupy 101” for overseas Filipinos

Migrante International, a member of the International League of Peoples’ Struggles (ILPS) and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), supports the growing global “occupy” movement.

Migrante International chairperson Garry Martinez called on all Migrante chapters around the world to participate in the demonstrations to uphold migrants’ rights and welfare and protest and resist labor export policy and the exploitation of migrants’ cheap labor and remittances.

Martinez said that overseas Filipinos, like other sectors, are up in arms against budget cuts on direct services on OFWs, state exactions, xenophobia, discrimination, crackdowns and massive layoffs as a result of the present global economic crisis.

“We call on overseas Filipinos to join the occupy protests wherever they may be,” Martinez said.

Filipino-Americans in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle and other states in the US led by BAYAN-USA have taken to the streets calling for an end to imperialist plunder, state repression and wars of aggression perpetrated by monopoly capitalism in the name of corporate greed for profit.

In Hong Kong, OFWs led by ILPS and BAYAN-Hong Kong also staged their own solidarity actions.

Martinez enjoined other Migrante chapters and Filipino communities participate in the protests or launch their own actions. He posed five guidelines and pointers for overseas Filipinos in joining the occupy protests:

Know your democratic rights.

  1. Concretize your slogans and demands.
  2. Come in droves. Participate as a Filipino community.
  3. Link up with migrants of other nationalities.
  4. Condemn police violence and brutality. Migrants of the world are entitled to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.

At the homefront, Migrante International, together with other organizations under NO CUTS! (Network Opposed to OFW Budget Cuts), is gearing for series of activities and protests in time for the bicameral 2012 budget deliberations.

Migrante International is also a participating organization of Kilos Na!, a multi-sectoral alliance against budget cuts on social services. #