On 27 February 2019, the president of the Musahamat Workers Labour Union (MLWU), Esperidion Cabaltera; vice president Richard Genabe; and secretary Ronald Rosales were taken from their homes in the Compostela Valley by unidentified armed men.
Cabaltera and Genabe had earlier been the target of military harassment and had filed a complaint at the police station. The day before their arrest, military agents forcibly entered their home. Cabaltera and Genabe were taken to the 10th Infantry Division camp in Mawab, Compostella Valley. Rosales was taken to the 71st Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army camp in Barangay Lahi, Pantukan.
During their detention the union leaders were forced to sign a confession saying they were supporters of the New People’s Army (NPA) to clear their names from an alleged “military list.” In reality, they had simply been leading their union’s work to improve working conditions and wages in the banana plantation owned by Musahamat farm. Musahamat is a Kuwait-based multinational firm engaged in the export of bananas and other fruits. It was not the first time they had faced such harassment. The union complained in 2016 about a smear campaign against them linking the union to the NPA.
The soldiers told them that they were being taken in for their membership of the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) national trade union centre, which had been “tagged” as a terrorist organisation and as a supporter of the NPA. The three unionists were released the following day after signing their “confessions”.
