‘Anger does not emerge in a vacuum’: Why protests can turn violent

MANILA — Riots, looting and fires have engulfed the streets of France alongside protests by the youth, workers and political groups angry over an education crisis and rising cost of living.

Mass protests have also spread in nearby European countries. Militant youth group Anakbayan has meanwhile said, “it is only a matter of time” for similar protests in the Philippines, where students also grapple with scarce resources in the education sector and Filipinos suffer from rising fuel costs and high inflation rates.   

The closest to France’s scale of mass violent protests seen in recent years in the Philippines was during the anti-corruption protests on September 21 last year, when police arrested at least 200 over clashes in Mendiola at the end of a large rally.

Authorities alleged those arrested were paid by politicians to make trouble, while lawyers argued many of them were “simply fleeing for safety when they were apprehended.”

Violent resistance from the people “is a response to systemic violence,” Sofia Jan Trinidad, chairperson of the National Union of Students of the Philippines, stressed.

“When people are pushed to their limits and left with nothing but their anger and frustration, we cannot simply dismiss or condemn their reactions without examining the conditions that brought them to that point,” she said. 

The massive protests last year were in response to the exposé of the multibillion-peso flood control corruption scandal, where some tagged as “big fish” remain at large. 

Aside from corruption, poverty and lack of access to social services, Trinidad said Filipinos also bear the burden of education that is “increasingly inaccessible” because of budget cuts and insufficient facilities.

Workers have long demanded a minimum daily wage of P1,200 — what they call a living wage — against a minimum wage of P718 to P755 in Metro Manila and P400 to P645 outside the capital region

Farmers meanwhile struggle with not having their own land and the high prices of farm inputs against low income from their crops.. 

These as corruption issues continue to surround government spending. 

The Supreme Court last month declared parts of the 2024 and 2025 General Appropriations Acts and special provisions of the 2026 national budget as unconstitutional due to the increases in the president’s total recommended appropriations.

Of the P7.2 trillion proposed in the 2027 national budget that hurdled the House of Representatives, civil society group People’s Budget Coalition has flagged over P1 trillion as questionable. 

“Ordinary Filipinos are left to bear the burden of a system that continuously fails them,” Trinidad said. 

Peaceful demonstrations escalate into violent confrontations because “the state has responded with police brutality and arrests” instead of providing solutions to issues raised, Trinidad said.

Last month, police officers allegedly harassed a reporter for alternative media Bulatlat who was covering a protest at the Department of Agrarian Reform.

This happened as protesters and police clashed on the same day, when several protesters also alleged harassment from police.

The Quezon City Police District has said its officers were only defending themselves.

Authorities also often cite a Martial Law-era requirement for permits for activities like protests held in places other than designated freedom parks.

Human rights advocates have pointed to supposed systemic patterns of brutality, evident in former president Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs” and during former dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr.’s regime, when thousands of individuals were killed or forcibly disappeared for dissenting against the state, according to Amnesty International.

Sociology assistant professor Yvan Yonaha said he understands the recourse to violence due to “chronic” societal problems, but added that other avenues to make the state responsive are also worth exploring.

These, he said, include building a civil society where people are informed, engaged and consulted about decisions that would affect them.

“I think there are also peaceful ways to do it, but it requires resources, it requires expertise, and it requires a reduction in political polarization,” Yonaha said. 

Flood victims and disaster survivors led by People Surge, the National Alliance of Disaster Survivors, protest in front of the St. Gerrard Construction Company office in Pasig City on Thursday, September 4, 2025. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

Elections remain the most trusted path to change among Filipinos, Yonaha concluded based on a study by Anthony Lawrence Borja, Ador Torneo and Ian Jayson Hecita. 

Elections, however, are influenced by an enduring force of populism, which divides Filipinos into groups based on political personalities and emotional disagreements, Yonaha said. 

“How are we going to talk about, for example, the kind of anti-political dynasty bill that we want if nag-aaway yung mga supporters ni [Vice President] Sara Duterte at ni [President Ferdinand] Bongbong Marcos [Jr.] (whn the supporters of Duterte and Marcos are fighting)?” he added.

Critics and some lawmakers have called House Bill 8389  — the Anti-Political Dynasty Act that hurdled the House of Representatives in July —a “watered-down” measure that “legitimizes” the concentration of political power. 

It prohibits those related within the second degree of consanguinity from holding elective posts at the same time, but not first cousins, nephews, nieces, uncles and aunts.

The bill was authored by House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III of Isabela and House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos, both political dynasts. 

Lawmakers and election advocates also call for a reform in the party-list system, which has been taken over by political clans and corporate interest groups.

Yonaha underscored that most politicians are backed by elite and familial ties and have resources that allow them to visit places and build perceived rapport with voters.

“So when worst comes to worst, nakulong sila, naakusahan sila ng corruption, people say, ‘No, hindi naman talaga ganyan. Kilala ko yan kasi nag-meet kami face-to-face,’” he said. 

(When they get jailed or are charged with corruption, people say ‘they’re not really like that, we have met face-to-face and I know them’.)

The connections and resources give politicians “very little incentive” to listen to the masses, Yonaha added. 

Several elected officials with prominent surnames have been arrested over alleged involvement in the flood control scandal, including Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, Sens. Jinggoy Estrada and former senator Bong Revilla. Former lawmaker Zaldy Co remains at large.

But many politicians previously convicted of corruption continued to thrive in politics.

Former president Joseph Estrada, who was impeached on corruption  allegations and who stepped down due to the second EDSA revolution in 2001, served as Manila mayor from 2013 to 2019. 

Former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, whose administration was marked by corruption and electoral fraud allegations, won Pampanga 2nd District’s congressional race right after her presidency and served as House speaker from 2018 to 2019.  

Vice President Sara Duterte, who faces an impeachment trial over unexplained wealth, remains the most preferred candidate for the 2028 presidential elections, based on surveys.

Trinidad underscored that the people should not be expected to be quiet and endure what she called attacks on their rights, dignity and livelihood.

“The anger of the people does not emerge in a vacuum; it is rooted in years of exploitation, neglect, repression, and state violence,” said Trinidad. 

“If the system continues to inflict violence on the people, it cannot expect the people to be passive in the face of their oppression,” she added.