THE University Council of the University of the Philippines in Diliman
issued a statement this morning challenging Proclamation No. 1017 and
calling for the resignation of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to
pave the way for a peaceful transition in leadership. The Council
declared UP Diliman as “an open space for public debate,” offering
physical refuge to those who may be arrested by virtue of the
presidential proclamation.
The Council is composed of associate professors, assistant professors,
and full professors. A little over a thousand faculty members are
qualified to sit in the Council.
The Council’s committee on National Policies and Programs drafted the
resolution which was then submitted to the body for adoption. All 206
Council members present in the meeting this morning unanimously voted
to adopt the statement.
The Council likewise voted to adopt in full an earlier statement by
the UP College of Law calling for the "immediate and unconditional
rescission of Proclamation 1017 and General Order No. 5. On this
motion, 197 voted Yes, 3 voted No, and 6 abstained.
Danilo Arao, vice chairman of the Council’s committee on national
policies and programs, said there are members of the faculty who will
walk out of their classes at 4:00 this afternoon "to articulate the
points that we have made in our resolution."
The full text of the UP Diliman University Council’s statement:
Defend our civil liberties and fight for freedom! Oppose Proclamation No. 1017!
A university in a democracy draws its life from an environment of
political freedom. None of its basic functions-the quest for truth,
the encouragement of critical inquiry, the stimulation of the
imagination-is possible in a climate of repression.
The University of the Philippines (UP) as the national university
is the vanguard in upholding civil liberties and fighting for freedom.
We affirm UP’s commitment to the fundamental constitutional and human
rights of the people.
UPD remains an open space for public debate consistent with its
treasured value of academic freedom;
UPD is a refuge for those who are subjected to physical arrests
and other forms of harassment;
UPD challenges every move to clamp down on any of our basic freedoms;
UPD reiterates its call for Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to resign; and
UPD supports a peaceful transition in political leadership.