MEMBERS of the faculty, employees, and student groups in the University of the Philippines Diliman and Manila campuses, and the Philippine Normal University tied green, black, white, and red ribbons, the colors of the Palestinian flag, to express solidarity to the people of Gaza who experience adverse sufferings in the month-long heightened siege by the Israeli government, and demand for a stop in bombings, especially of schools, universities and hospitals.

“It is upon us, students and workers in the academe to stand with our Palestinian sisters and brothers, and press for just peace and some semblance of humanity against the carnage that the Israeli government is unleashing against the people of Gaza. Schools and hospitals are the last refuges of the violence-battered people and bombing these places blatantly violates international humanitarian laws,” said Prof. Monfred Sy, spokesperson of the Congress of Teachers and Educators for Nationalism and Democracy.

Prof. Reginald Vallejos, President of the All UP Academic Employees Union, UP Manila Chapter, said the US-backed Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands is essentially a Zionist genocidal project against the indigenous Palestinian people, which has been happening for more than 75 years.

“We have to study back in history to understand and see how peace based on justice can be achieved in the Palestinian region, and that is through respecting the freedom and right to self-determination of the Palestinian people,” Vallejos said.

“We cannot just sit by and watch the death of thousands of women and children, while the warmongers shamelessly reject the calls for a humanitarian ceasefire. They are killing the future of a people who have every right to live freely and with dignity,” said Janelle Tibayan, spokesperson of ACT Education Students at the Philippine Normal University.

“As the Palestinian people, we Filipinos are victims as well of the US military intervention—from the Filipino-American war to the present time when the Filipino people are terrorized and suppressed by the Marcos puppet government, under the command of the US government and with the use of US and Israeli arms. As such, our call: from Palestine to the Philippines, stop the US war machine!” Sy said