Environmental activist and Karapatan national council member Jonila Castro has been subpoenaed by the Pasig City Prosecutor's Office over the Sept. 4 rally outside the Discaya-owned St. Gerrard Construction compound, where protesters engaged in mud-throwing and vandalism.

Related story: https://mb.com.ph/2025/09/04/protesters-hurl-mud-spray-paint-on-st-gerrard-constructions-gate-in-pasig

The subpoena, dated Sept. 15, orders Castro to submit her counter-affidavit and appear before the prosecutor’s office on Sept. 25 for alleged violation of Batas Pambansa 880, or the “Public Assembly Act of 1985.”

In a statement released on Friday, Sept. 19, rights group Karapatan condemned the subpoena against Castro, saying the Sept. 4 protest underscored how corruption remains rampant in government, citing “billions of pesos lost to anomalous infrastructure projects, including overpriced and substandard flood control programs that fail to protect and even worsen the conditions of affected communities.”

It also stressed that BP 880 is a Marcosian law designed to restrict people's right to protest, which human rights defenders have long opposed. The group said it should be scrapped.

Karapatan also stated that the filing of charges against Castro is a deliberate attempt to cover up and divert attention from the real issue of corruption while persecuting activists, human rights defenders, and communities who continue to expose and resist systemic corruption in government.

Meanwhile, in response, Castro said the complaint filed against her allegedly shows who is really being protected.

“Inilalantad ng kasong natanggap ko ngayong araw mula sa kapulisan kung sino ang tunay nilang pinoprotektahan—hindi ang mamamayang makatwirang naglalantad ng katotohanan at nananawagan ng katarungan, kundi ang mga tulad ng mga Discaya na magnanakaw. Inilalantad nito ang kawalan ng katarungan para sa mamamayan sa ilalim ng administrasyong Marcos Jr. (The case I received today from the police exposes who they are truly protecting—not the people who rightfully speak the truth and call for justice, but those like the Discayas. It exposes the injustice faced by the people under the Marcos Jr. administration),” she said.

“Ang sumambulat na korapsyon at ang nagpapatuloy na pag-atake sa lumalaban ay patunay ng sagad na kabulukan ng sistema (The corruption that has erupted and the continuing attacks on those who resist are proof of the deep rottenness of the system),” she added.

Castro also emphasized that it is the people’s right to complain, demand accountability, and protest, especially in the face of blatant corruption.

“Kulang pa ang putik na inihahagis at ipinapahid sa tarangkahan ng mga Discaya at sa mga mukha ng mga magnanakaw at korap, sa putik at kahirapang kinalulubugan ng mamamayan sa araw-araw (The mud we threw and smeared on the gates of the Discayas, on the faces of the thieves and the corrupt is nothing compared to the mud and poverty that people sink into every day),” she continued.

Castro said they would face the complaint but added that the public must also take a stand by joining the Sept. 21 protest at Luneta to oppose corruption, fascism, and what she described as a rotten system.

“Kung idinaan nila sa kaso ang lalong panunupil, idadaan namin sa protesta sa kalsada ang paglaban sa korapsyon, pasismo, at bulok na sistema. Kinakasuhan ang ninakawan, pinoprotektahan ang mga magnanakaw sa kaban ng bayan—ito ang sistemang dapat nating labanan. Tumungo sa Luneta sa Sep 21! (If they use the complaint to further suppress us, we will take our fight against corruption, fascism, and the rotten system to the streets. They file cases against those who were robbed, while protecting thieves using taxpayers’ money—this is the system we must oppose. Join us at Luneta on September 21!),” she urged.