On today’s commemoration of the 125th Independence Day, Gabriela Women’s Party pays tribute to all Filipino heroes and heroines who dedicated their lives fighting for freedom against colonizers and foreign powers.

The unbreakable nationalist spirit of Gabriela Silang, Andres Bonifacio and all other revolutionaries in the face of formidable foes puts puppet regimes to shame, including the current Marcos Jr. administration which has served our lands on a silver platter for additional US military bases, and which continues to cozy up with Chinese investments.

“It is deeply ironic that while President Marcos Jr. hoists the Philippine flag today and proclaims that we will not be subservient to any foreign power, he remains to be an avid supporter of foreign-backed militarism in the West Philippine Sea and staunch promoter of pro-foreign neoliberal policies. He has accepted increased military exercises with different foreign superpowers in the Philippine territory, foremost with the US through various iterations of military drills,” said Gabriela in a viber statement.

The women’s group further said that, “Marcos Jr.’s “friend to all” foreign policy dangerously places the country in the midst of Washington and Beijing’s increased jostling for global superiority. It is a foreign policy that is friendly to aggressions but is blind to the further erosion of our territorial integrity and sovereignty.”

According to Gabriela, “truly commemorating Philippine independence should mean junking one-side pacts with foreign powers, including the Mutual Defense Treaty, Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement.”