Duterte Youth Party-list Rep. Ducielle Cardema
MANILA – Academic freedom does not include “freedom to commit sedition or inciting people to rebel against the government,” Duterte Youth Party-list Rep. Ducielle Cardema said on Tuesday.
Cardema’s remarks came in the wake of criticisms from leftist groups on Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana’s move to terminate the 1989 Department of National Defense-University of the Philippines accord.
Cardema, who serves as vice-chairperson of the House committee on national defense and security, said majority of UP students are “hardworking and peace-loving, focused on their goals in life to uplift their families and our country”.
She lamented that several militant groups have failed to condemn the killings perpetrated by communist terrorist groups.
“Then there are a few who fanatically believe that they can serve the people by bringing down the government established by the Filipino People. These few radical leftists are anti-government, anti-government troops, and they do not condemn the killings & attacks of the Communist Party of the Philippines - New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) against our people across the nation,” she added.
Cardema believes these “few radicals” abused the “academic freedom” to include freedom to commit sedition or inciting people to rebel against the government.
“The UP-DND Accord was used to uphold academic freedom but these leftist groups have abused it to shield them, so that the government and our government troops cannot arrest them for their seditious acts including their visiting NPA comrades who have long used their campuses as recruiting grounds for several Filipino youth to become NPA fighters,” she said.
She also urged the DND to cancel the similar agreement with the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.
“It creates inequality among the more than 400 campuses of the different state universities and colleges (SUCs) across the nation, for it gives special treatment to only two SUCs,” she added.
Cardema, in her statement, said her support for the DND is not an act of red-tagging.
“My husband, NYC Commissioner Ronald Cardema, was also a member of the League of Filipino Students (LFS) in UP before and we have schoolmates there who have already been killed as NPA fighters,” she added.
The accords of the DND made with UP and PUP are a clear manifestation of special treatment and were eventually abused, she said.
“Kung sa 400 plus campuses ng iba’t ibang SUCs ng bansa wala namang ganyang accord pero peaceful naman, tama lamang tanggalin na ang special treatment na yan na naaabuso rin naman (In the other 400 SUCs in the country without that kind of accord but their campuses are peaceful, it is only right to remove the special treatment afforded to UP and PUP. It was abused),” she said.
In a statement, former University of the Philippines president Jose Abueva said he was “dismayed” over the move to abrogate the deal.
“Former President Ramos and I had….deep understanding between us about the inalienable rights to freedom, democracy, justice and peace that lasted beyond our respective presidencies. This understanding was rooted in mutual trust and respect. I am appalled and dismayed about this unilateral abrogation,” Abueva said. (PNA)
