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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Groups, netizens call for release of Lumad school teacher

Groups, netizens call for release of Lumad school teacher

Published Feb 15, 2021 05:21 pm

Various groups and netizens have called for the release of volunteer Lumad school teacher Chad Errol Booc following the operation conducted by the Police Regional Office 7 (PRO-7) inside the Talamban campus of the University of San Carlos Cebu City on Monday, Feb. 15.

(Photo from Chad Booc's Facebook)

A total of 25 individuals, including teachers, Lumad students, and Lumad elders, were illegally arrested in the operation conducted by the PRO-7 and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Innabuyog Gabriela Youth-University of the Philippines Baguio (IGY-UPB) chapter condemned the arrest of Booc, a volunteer teacher for ALCADEV.

"As an Iskolar ng Bayan, he has dedicated his life as a volunteer teacher for Lumad children and has long been red-tagged by the State," the group said.

"IGY UPB strongly condemns yet another attack on the IP community! We remain steadfast in our call that defending national minorities and their ancestral lands is NOT terrorism," it underscored.

SINAG, the official student publication of the College of Social Sciences and Philosophy of the University of the Philippines Diliman likewise joined the calls to release Booc.

"Booc, along with other Lumad teachers, has endured baseless red-tagging from the State. However, he remains fearless in defending national minorities and their ancestral land," it added.

In a tweet, Human rights lawyer Maria Sol Taule slammed the arrest of her Booc who was previously arrested for opposing martial law.

" took the path less traveled and spent his time teaching lumad children. He was arrested again today. Sobra na ang gubyernong ito (This government is too much)," Taule wrote.

Former Bayan Muna congressman Teddy Casiño called Booc's arrest "a great injustice to him and the Lumad kids he serves."

"Chad Booc is one of the rare voices on Twitter consistently advocating for the Lumad struggle. He is also one of the petitioners against the Anti Terrorism Act now pending in the Supreme Court," he added.

"'s account helps in amplifying the legitimate calls of the Lumad children. He gives us access and broader context to stories on ground which are usually inaccessible from corporate media. Now he's been illegally arrested by the state," one netizen Tweeted.

Meanwhile, the hashtag #FreeLumad25 reached over 30,000 tweets as of writing.

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