RMP National Office
UCCP leaders speak out in solidarity together with peasant and indigenous peoples advocates
#DefendTheDefenders #StandWithRMP
On June 11, 2021, at 10am, Church leaders and other supporters gathered outside the Manila Trial Court for a vigil protest, while legal counsels of the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines(RMP) sought for the lifting of the Anti-Money Laundering Council’s freeze on their bank accounts.
The Rural Missionaries of the Philippines, who have been engaging ministry with poor communities for fifty years, are subjects of persecution and “red-tagging.” The United Church of Christ in the Philippines expressed a strong empathy for RMP, since the UCCP Haran Sanctuary is facing similar harassments. Bishop Emergencio Padillo of the UCCP expressed solidarity and lamented “rather than appreciating their contributions to society, the Duterte administration with their all-out war policies, seeks to attack RMP’s ministries by raising false allegations of ‘terrorism financing.’” Bishop Padillo commended RMP for being instrumental “in bringing health, literacy, and livelihood programs to some of the poorest and most marginalized areas of the country.”
“RMP is engaged in mission and ministry, which is part of their practice of their religious freedoms. The absurd allegations of ‘terrorism financing’ only unmask how far this government is prepared to go; they want to stifle dissent, and in the process, they are undermining democracy in the Philippines,” said Bishop Padillo.
Another UCCP pastor, Rev. Callum Tabada, also assailed the Duterte administration for impinging on the practice of religion, because they don’t understand ‘peacebuilding.’ He explained that people in the Duterte administration “misconstrue transformative love as rebellion.”
“The law is being ‘weaponized’ against any who do not petty after the National Task Force-End Local Communist Armed Conflict. Malicious legal maneuvers, like the case lodged against RMP, are intended to weaken the ministries of the church that are trying to help communities to empower themselves and protect their interests and welfare,” said Rev. Tabada.
Noting that the forces of exploitation through logging, mining and extraction of other resources, together with militarists who promote such endeavors, make life difficult in rural areas, the protesters insisted that Church ministries are under attack because rural communities are easier to dominate, when they are less educated and aware of their rights.
“The current predicament of RMP, where their banks accounts are frozen, denies much-needed services to poor communities. Under the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, there will surely be even more harassments and false allegations against church ministries. The poor are the ones who will suffer most,” said Bishop Padillo.
Once again, the hearing was reset. Now scheduled for September 20, 2021, the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines will be denied access to their mission monies for months more. “After decades of service to the poor, this case against them is shameful and should be dismissed,” said Bishop Padillo.
11 June 2021
