|
|
Interview with Prof. Jose Maria Sison
on KPFK 90.7 FM today at 5pm
Beneath the Surface
with Michael Slate
KPFK 90.7 FM (Los Angeles)
or www.kpfk.org
June 5, 2007, 5 pm
Tune in today at 5 pm to KPFK 90.7 FM as Michael Slate of "Beneath the Surface" interviews Professor Jose Maria Sison. Sison will discuss his persecution by the US and Philippine governments and most recently by the European Union.
When you think of a revolutionary, who do you envision? Some think of
revolutionaries as people who fight for their principles in order to create a
more just society. Jose Maria Sison is thought to be one of the most
revolutionary thinkers and experts on the Philippines.
Sison is currently the Chairperson of the International League of Peoples'
Struggle (ILPS). He has remained one of the sharpest and most vocal critics
of US foreign policy, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. Sison was one of
the longest-held political prisoners under Martial Law in the Philippines during
the Marcos dictatorship.
Sison became a victim of the US War on Terror after getting listed as a
terrorist by the US State Department shortly after the deployment of US
troops to the Philippines after September 11th. The US has demonized
Sison in a futile attempt to isolate one of the world's leading anti-imperialists.
Since 1987, Sison has resided in the Netherlands. Under pressure by the US
and Philippine governments, the Dutch government and most recently the
Council of the European Union have also put Sison on the list of "terrorists."
Sison has been prevented from being admitted as a political refugee, despite
the fact that he has been recognized as a political refugee by the highest
Dutch administrative court in 1992 and by the office of the High Commission
for Refugees.
Even though he is being subjected to punitive sanctions for the heinous
crime of terrorism, Sison has not been informed of any specific act of terrorism
of which he is suspected and without any proper criminal investigation, hearing
or trial. In 1998 the Philippine government declared and certified that there
was no criminal charge pending against Sison.
An international campaign to defend the rights of Sison is currently being carried
around the world. We support this campaign and reject the notion that fighting
for a country's national sovereignty is terrorism. We see that Sison's plight is
similar to the cases of other Filipinos such as the Batasan 5 and Congressperson
Crispin Beltran. All of the aforementioned parties call for genuine democracy
and change but are being systematically attacked by the US and the Philippines
in order to delegitimize their just aspirations for national self-determination.
We demand that Professor Sison be removed from the list of terrorists! We call
for the full respect and protection of Sison as a refugee under international
conventions!
|
|