MANILA — Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP) denounced on Aug. 15 the harassment by state agents of its leader in Marikina City. 

According to GWP, Tess De Jesus, chapter leader of GWP in Barangay Fortune, Marikina City and former city-wide president, has been repeatedly harassed by state agents. 

On Aug. 11, De Jesus was visited by three unidentified men in civilian clothes accompanied by a barangay tanod. They offered ayuda (aid) but De Jesus refused, explaining that it was actually GWP that had helped her secure housing after her home was demolished in 2017.

It happened again last week, Aug. 15, when she was again visited, this time by agents of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). She was warned against being active in GWP and again offered “aid” if she would stop. She was also urged to “surrender.” 

The GWP-Marikina said that “this is a desperate attempt to silence and hinder the service of the Gabriela Partylist to women and the people—after the state’s failure to silence us by removing Gabriela Partylist from the Lower House.”

The group said that this pattern of harassment and forced surrender is a continuation of what was done in previous years.

In 2023 and 2024, Elizabeth Maynigo, a current vice-president of GWP–NCR and GWP–Marikina, was also pressured to surrender.

Arlene Brosas, former GWP representative, also condemned the harassment and surveillance by government agencies.

GWP–Marikina has been at the forefront of relief operations and soup kitchens for communities devastated by the recent heavy rains and floods.

The chapter is also campaigning to stop destructive quarrying and mining activities in Rizal, which they say is a major cause of flooding in Marikina and nearby cities.

“These attacks are meant to scare women into silence, but instead, they only strengthen our resolve to defend our people, protect our environment, and uphold the rights of women and the marginalized,” said Sarah Elago, GWP National Vice Chairperson. (AMU, DAA)