HUMAN RIGHTS | Police dispersal of PUP students at Batasan Pambansa sparks concerns

February 13, 2024 , 11:04 AM

By Beatrice Puente

(February 13, 2024) – A government agency and public officials raised serious concerns over the dispersal of college students who were protesting in front of the House of Representatives in Quezon City on Monday, stressing that it violated constitutional rights.

In a statement, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said the members of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) should have exercised “maximum tolerance” in dealing with the students of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) who were merely exercising their right to peaceably assemble.

“While the Commission recognizes the role of law enforcers in ensuring peace and security across the nation, it is important to take note that this comes with the responsibility of being committed to a human rights-based approach,” said the CHR.

Several students from PUP trooped to the gates of Batasan Pambansa to demand student representation in the committee hearing into the National Polytechnic University (NPU) Bill. Two student leaders—PUP student regent Miss Kim Modelo and SAMASA PUP chairperson Ronjay Mendiola—were eventually able to join the hearing.

But before this, groups said the students who were protesting were met with violence by police officers, as shown by a video posted by The Catalyst, PUP’s official student publication.

Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte condemned the dispersal of the students, recognizing that they were merely expressing their sentiments on an important issue for their university. She also reminded the QPCD that the local government unit does not tolerate the acts it did against the students.

“Walang puwang ang ganitong aksyon sa lungsod, lalo pa’t kilala ang Quezon City bilang lugar kung saan malayang nakakapagtipon at nakakapagpahayag ng saloobin at karapatan ang iba’t ibang grupo,” said Belmonte.

Pahayag ni Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte

Mariin nating kinokondena ang dispersal ng mga pulis sa mga estudyante na nagpapahayag ng kanilang saloobin sa isang mahalagang isyu sa House of Representatives. pic.twitter.com/YKZhsanlwP

— Quezon City Government (@QCGov) February 12, 2024

She further noted that QCPD chief Brigadier Gen. Redrico Maranan already ordered the local Internal Affairs Service to probe the incident for any violation of operational procedures. She added that the Batasan Police station commander had a meeting with Maranan and was told to remind his personnel about the protocols during protests.

ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro also condemned the violent dispersal and called for accountability for the violation of the students’ rights.

“Tahimik at mapayapang nagkokondukta ng kilos-protesta ang mga estudyante ng PUP pero dahas at pananakit ang naging tugon ng kapulisan,” said Castro, adding that this was not the first time that it happened to protesters. “Walang lugar sa demokratikong lipunan ang patuloy na panunupil ng kapulisan.”

Nais panagutin ni ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. France Castro ang station commander ng QCPD Station 6 dahil sa umano’y naging marahas na tugon ng mga pulis sa mga estudyanteng nagsasagawa ng kilos-protesta sa harap ng House of Representatives, Feb. 12. #News5 pic.twitter.com/aHP1G17WhI

— News5 (@News5PH) February 13, 2024

The CHR vowed to stay on alert to respond to such incidents marred with human rights violations.

“Part of upholding our mandate is to constantly promote and protect the rights of Filipinos to peaceful assembly and to remind law enforcement agencies of our shared responsibility to craft a conducive country which listens to the sentiments and needs of its citizens,” said the CHR.

(PM)

Privacy Statement

Our Privacy Commitment

TV5 Network Inc. values and respects your privacy. We are committed to safeguarding your personal data in compliance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and its implementing rules and regulations.

We have developed a Privacy Policy that adopts and observes appropriate standards for personal data protection. While our Privacy Policy sets out the general principles governing the collection, use, and disclosure of our users’ personal information, our Privacy Commitment seeks to inform you more about TV5’s privacy practices.

Why do we collect your personal information (as applicable)?

We may collect and maintain basic information about you as site user of TV5 sites for the following purposes:

To deliver news and updates on current events, sports, esports and entertainment;
To share livestreams of news and sports events;
To understand our viewers’ needs and preferences;
To meet legal and regulatory requirements; and
To perform other processes or disclosures that are required to comply with pertinent laws, rules, or regulations.

Where do we get your personal information?

There are several ways we collect your personal information.

Information that you personally provided.

Most of the personal information we have are those that you have provided us when you:
- Register to our programs or services;
- Inquired, filed a complaint or requested for our services;
- Took part in our research and surveys; and/or
- Became our Partner, Vendor, Contractor or Supplier.

Information we collect during your engagement with us

We also collect information as you use our products and services, like:
- Viewing our websites;
- Activities that are being tracked by our website cookies;
- Calling our hotline;
- Using our apps, websites, and self-service channels and portals; and/or
- Joining our promos, prize raffles, or rewards and loyalty programs.

Information we collect from other sources

Other means of collection of information may be through:
- Our market research initiatives;
- When you visit and use our websites and mobile application; and
- Subsidiaries, affiliates, and third-party business partners to whom you have given consent to share your information to us.

When do we disclose personal information?

There may be instances when we are required to share the information you provided us. In such cases, we ensure that your personal information will be disclosed on a confidential manner, through secure channels and in compliance with the Data Privacy Act and other privacy laws.

We will never share, rent, or sell your personal information to third parties outside of TV5 except in special cases where you have given consent, and in cases described in our privacy policy.

In some instances, we may be required to disclose your personal information to our agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, business partners and other third-party agencies and service providers as part of our regular business operations and for the provision of our programs and services. This means we might share your information with our service providers, contractors, and professional advisers who help us provide our services.

How we protect your personal information

The integrity, confidentiality, and security of your information is important to us. We have implemented technical, organizational, and physical security measures that are designed to protect your information from unauthorized or fraudulent access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, and other unlawful activities.

We also put in effect the following safeguards:

We keep and protect your information using a secured server behind a firewall, encryption and security controls;
We keep your information only for as long as it is necessary for us to (a) provide the products and services that you avail from us, (b) for our legitimate business purposes, (c) to comply with pertinent laws, and (d) for special cases that will require the exercise or defense of legal claims;
We limit the access to your information only to qualified and authorized personnel who are trained to handle your information with strict confidentiality;
We undergo regular audits and rigorous testing of our infrastructure’s security protocols to ensure your data is always protected;
We promptly notify you and the National Privacy Commission when sensitive personal information that may, under the circumstances, be used to enable identity fraud are reasonably believed to have been acquired by an unauthorized person; and
We let you update your information securely to keep our records accurate.

TV5 will not collect, use, or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than the purpose that you may have given your consent for.

What are your choices?

We make sure that we have your consent to continue to collect, use, and disclose your personal information for the purposes that we have identified. We want you to know that you may object or withdraw your consent and/or edit your consent preferences at any time.

If you wish to have access to the personal information in our custody or if you think that the personal information you provided is incomplete, or otherwise inaccurate, you may get in touch with our Data Protection Officer through the contact details provided below. In some instances, we may request for supporting documents or proof before we effect requested changes.

Data Protection Officer
TV5 Network Inc.
Reliance corner Sheridan Streets
Mandaluyong City
tv5dataprivacy@tv5.com.ph

What happens when there are changes in our Policy?

From time to time, we may update our privacy policy and practices to comply with changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, adapt to new technologies and protocols, and align with the best practices of the industry.

You will be provided notices if the changes are significant and, if we are required by law, we will obtain your updated consent.