MANILA, Philippines – Students and members of the faculty at the University of the Philippines (UP) have staged a series of protest activities since renewed concerns about fraternity-related violence gripped the campus recent weeks.
On Tuesday, November 27, students and faculty from the University of the Philippines walked out of their classes to condemn the hate and violence expressed in a series of leaked screenshots of an alleged group chats attributed to members of the Upsilon Sigma Phi fraternity.
Led by faculty members of the Department of English and Comparative Literature, College of Arts and Letters, people gathered at the old Faculty Center grounds for 100 minutes, from 1- 2:40 pm.
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A call to walk out of classes and offices on November 27, 2018:<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/endimpunity?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#endimpunity</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/endmisogyny?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#endmisogyny</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/endFRV?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#endFRV</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/thisisnotmyUP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#thisisnotmyUP</a> <a href="https://t.co/ALQnF1RTua">pic.twitter.com/ALQnF1RTua</a></p>— P̶a̶o̶l̶o̶ ̶M̶a̶n̶a̶l̶o̶ (@paolomanalo) <a href="https://twitter.com/paolomanalo/status/1065862225720561665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The group shared 100 statements against fraternity-related violence. They gathered to condemn the “misogynistic, racist, homophobic, and violent statements” from that alleged group chat that had been dubbed #LonsiLeaks.
The use of the number 100 was a dig at Upsilon's centennial, which the fraternity is celebrating this year.
The latest controversy Upsilon is mired in started with an altercation with Alpha Phi Beta members on November 14. The following day, the warring fraternities got into a car chase, which was initially reported as a shooting incident. Some of those involved sustained minor injuries and were brought to the university infirmary.
Two members of the UP Diliman University Student Council (USC) and one from the student council in UP Manila who were also members of the fraternities resigned from their posts amid the controversies.
Centennial woes
What began as a month of celebration for one of UP’s oldest fraternities has since been overshadowed by the recent incidents.
Aside from the walkout, the student community also initiated the taking down of Upsilon banners displayed around the Academic Oval. The fraternity's tambayan (hangout) and parking barriers were also removed from the AS parking area.
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">additional victories today:<br>- Upsilon's banners around the Acad Oval (or at least, the Vargas-Fc-AS-Eduk side of it) have been removed<br>- Upsilon's tambayan & barriers have been removed from the AS Parking<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EndImpunity?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EndImpunity</a> <a href="https://t.co/0qy6IW2FjL">pic.twitter.com/0qy6IW2FjL</a></p>— contra mundum (@jmadrigaldy) <a href="https://twitter.com/jmadrigaldy/status/1066904503624953857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
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On Thursday, November 22, there was an attempt to revise Upsilon’s Wikipedia page with an entry saying “Upsilon Sigma Phi has been involved with multiple cases of FRV (frat-related violence) within and outside their university.”
The said edits had been taken down as of November 27.
On Saturday, November 24, the fraternity’s anniversary exhibit at the AS lobby was dismantled following the College of Social Sciences and Philosophy’s call for its immediate removal. The exhibit was supposed to run until December 7.
Frat-related violence
Meanwhile, free stickers against impunity with the text: “Classic woke ass non-Upsilonian UP student against impunity #EndFRV” are being distributed in a printing store in UP Los Baños.
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">FREE STICKERS AGAINST IMPUNITY‼️<br><br>Drop by Bestprintz @ Grove, UPLB (beside Super Cha) and ask our national hero Kuya Jeff here for "stickers ni Cidee" ✨<br><br>SPREAD THE WORD. GET YOURS NOW & PLASTER IT ON A FRATMAN'S FOREHEAD. <a href="https://t.co/M1rNkVJeFF">pic.twitter.com/M1rNkVJeFF</a></p>— Cidee | #EndImpunity (@cideeeee) <a href="https://twitter.com/cideeeee/status/1066962050637717504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
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UP Diliman vice chancellor for student affairs Jerwin Agpaoa says no action has been taken yet, as separate investigations are still ongoing.
In a statement, UP president Danilo Concepcion already promised to “root out [the] problem” of fraternity violence, after recent campus incidents involving two fraternities raised renewed concerns within the UP community. (READ: More groups slam ‘violent, misogynist’ frat-linked chat)
What is your stand on frat-related violence? Share your thoughts on X! – with a report from Lisa David/Rappler.com