Solidarity with Autoworkers Fighting Persecution in the Philippines

UAW Region 9A stands in solidarity with Filipino trade union organizers Gavino Panganiban and Maritess David, who were arrested by Philippine government forces last week while organizing union relief efforts for workers affected by Tropical Storm Kristine.

Gavino and Maritess are organizers for Kilusang Mayo Uno (May First Movement) union federation. They are just two of the countless union activists who have been harassed, arrested, threatened, attacked, and even extrajudicially killed by the Philippine police and armed forces throughout the past few decades for their tireless organizing on behalf of the working class in the face of extreme repression.

Gavino and Maritess belong to the regional and industrial federations under KMU that represented Honda autoworkers in the Southern Tagalog area of the Philippines. These autoworkers waged a heroic struggle against plant closure and layoffs by Honda in 2020—a struggle that our UAW siblings are currently fighting at Stellantis and throughout the Big 3 automakers. Across the United States, Stellantis workers are now taking strike authorization votes in order to fight against plant closures. The Filipino Honda workers’ struggle is inspiring as our members face intense intimidation from Stellantis, whose executives are terrified that they will be defeated in their plans to not comply with the investments that were promised after the 2023 stand-up strike.