Groups question Iloilo market vendor arrest during clearing
By Juliane Judilla
By Juliane Judilla
ILOILO CITY — Two progressive groups questioned the arrest of an ambulant vendor during a clearing operation at the Iloilo Terminal Market on Aug. 18, alleging that the city government distorted the incident and used criminal charges to intimidate vendors.
In a joint statement dated Aug. 21, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) Panay and the Panay Consumers Alliance (PCA) said the vendor, who was selling fruits and vegetables, was arrested during a clearing operation led by the Iloilo City Local Economic Enterprise Office (LEEO), taken to Iloilo City Police Station 7, detained overnight, and charged with direct assault the following day.
The vendor was required to post PHP 36,000 in bail.
BAYAN Panay and PCA disputed the city government’s account, saying the vendor was not the aggressor and had committed no criminal act.
They also raised concerns about the Aug. 19 inquest proceedings, claiming their paralegals witnessed LEEO representatives and legal counsel confronting and blaming the vendor while he allegedly had no lawyer present.
The groups questioned whether the arrest and subsequent proceedings complied with due process.
They said the arrest occurred amid months of clearing operations against bolanteros, or ambulant vendors, whose livelihoods have been affected by restrictions on selling at the city’s public markets.
The clearing operations are part of the city government’s enforcement of its Market Code of 2009, which restricts unauthorized vending within 100 meters of public markets, while the city has also proposed moving more than 200 longtime bolanteros to permanent selling spaces on the third floor of the Iloilo Terminal Market.
BAYAN Panay and PCA called for justice and due process for the vendor and accused the city government of criminalizing vendors who oppose its clearing policies.
The allegations have not been independently verified.
The Iloilo City government’s Aug. 20 statement presented a different account of the Aug. 18 incident.
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