Etniko Bandido Infoshop

Etniko Bandido Infoshop and Community Resource Center

A laboratory for liberational project and ideas. Etniko Bandido Infoshop became a venue for different kind of community event and hosting activities such as workshop, film screening, exhibition, meetings, mini-concert other social gathering etc. Our dedication and passion on community-centered projects and values-oriented initiative will continue. Promoting anti-authoritarian, mutual-aid, voluntary-cooperation, horizontalism and culture of Sharing.

On this especial day, we managed to organize a small gathering with friends. At around 4pm, we bring out the table outside to arrange the vegetables to be given free to our community, as part of the initiative of Buting Community Free Shop and Pantry after that we moved inside to continue the activity.

Later, an impromptu performance made by Ju who share and read his zine. Then the informal introduction of the zines called “Ang Mga Lumpen ng Bangkusay” the content of the zines tackles the stories and life of the Lumpen or the so-called outcast, unorganized and unimportant people in society, the zines also inspired by the late anti-colonizer warrior named Macario Sakay, (March 1, 1878 – September 13, 1907) was a Filipino general who took part in the 1896 Philippine Revolution against the Spanish Empire and in the Philippine–American War. After the war was declared over by the United States in 1902, Sakay continued resistance by leading guerrilla raids.

The discussion continues while we share what’s on the table, foods and drinks. A small gathering like this eases the boredom and isolation for the long year of restriction and lockdowns because of the pandemic crisis. Mental health issues like anxiety and depression became a common experience here. We don’t know when it will end because the government unreliability to manage the health situation is also a crisis.

We are thankful to all the friends who joined and supported the celebration of our 11th years of being one of the autonomous spaces that still running and actively participating in various socio-political issues and community-oriented activities. Love and in continues rebellion – EB

(A) peaceful and creative event in protest against Police killings and oppression. ACAB!

Free individuals organized and participate in this event to denounce police atrocities. Some give free haircut, free foods cook by Food Not Bombs volunteers other showcase their DIY product as an alternative livelihood, there is a film exhibition, music performances and other spontaneous activities.

There are already unaccounted 20,000 police killings in the past 5 years under this Duterte regime. High volume of numbers perpetrated during his War on Drugs campaign. 

We don’t want to normalize blood bath killings. We Resist! We will fight! 

Last two weeks ago, a fire broke out in the village of Ismar, Kalawaan Pasig City. There are 8 houses burn to the ground and 12 families lost most of their belongings.  There are no casualties.

The area is full of houses, good thing that the communities are fast enough to help each other to stop the spreading of the fire. 

We reached out to them to provide foods and used clothes. In coordination and collaboration with Ismar Community Pantry, Ismar Homeowners Association, Buting Community Free Shop and Pantry and Food Not Bombs we managed to support the affected families and their neighbors. 

As our Buting Community Free Shop and Pantry still continue we also think the needs of the children in our community, luckily, someone from our Pasig Community Pantry Network share their donation to other pantries. They gave us a 2 boxes of yogurt then we distribute it to estimated 80 kids around our neighborhood. 

In one month of Community Pantry Mutual Aid initiatives, we proudly created a bond and a network of community Pantry organizer here in the municipality of Pasig dedicated to support their communities in this time of Pandemic crisis. A friendship, camaraderie and togetherness bloom in difficult times and despair.

Love, compassion and empathy became a common ground element to connect diverse individuals.

A network of selfless individuals organizing themselves autonomously and critical with the government interference. A people who believe that taking care of each other is a necessity.

As with the police and National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) continues to threaten, intimidate, profiled, red-tagged and harassed volunteers of the community pantry, the congress are seeking for an inquiry session regarding human rights violation and at least two senator are calling to defund (NTF-ELCAC) and somehow put the budget on providing adequate food for marginalized communities affected by lockdown.

Community Pantry created a movement that showed different possibilities for a future imagined communities. A community that will take matters with their own hands rather than waiting for someone to help them. This will be an opening for a much more community-centered project that is plan, initiated, facilitate, organize by the community themselves.

Power to the community. Decentralized. Direct Democracy. Politics from below.

No to opportunism.

Buting Community Free Shop & Pantry

Mutual Aid Not Charity

Libreng Palengke with Free Coffee

Culture of SharingButing, Pasig City

This activities already on the 8th day straight now. It continues because of the donation from the neighbors, friends and family.

In a financial crisis situation that we faced, many people loss their job including some of our neighbor. Mutual-aid is a necessity specially to those communities affected by the pandemic. It is a protest against hunger instigated by an incompetent government.

Sharing is an act of resistance against this capitalist instigated falsed reality. Today, if you are aware on how the system works you should re-think and imagine a new society that solely base on sharing, mutual-cooperation, volunteerism, self-initiative to empower people for self-determination and to advance the horizontal social relation.We can achieve this by collaborating with diverse individual who believes in solidarity, compassion and empathy. The community will take care each other and State will be irrelevant in the future.

To all those people who wanted to share or donate, just send us a message. #reallyreallyfreemarket#socialsolidarity#communitynotauthority#foodnotbombs

It has been a year now; people are still struggling economically specially the marginalized community. The government has no clear plan and support to those people in needs.

We are experiencing lockdown again in areas of Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna and Cavite. Every municipalities implemented curfew from 6pm to 5am, checkpoints of police in uniform are everywhere and everyone will be penalized if they violate certain protocols and policy. The same response that they did last year, to tighten the security and control the movement of the people without a clear preparation on how to handle health crisis and how they will support the unemployed masses.

Again, the same as last year many people lost their job, struggling to have food on their table and financially broke.  According to Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) there are 4 million unemployed and the number are getting higher because of the strict lockdown. The general population are still struggling since last year and one of the sectors highly affected by this crisis are the transportation sector. Most of the public utility jeepney (PUJ) are not operational, the government push for modernization and force them to convert it into electric jeep (E-Jeep). Jeepney operator and drivers are not prepared to convert their unit as they do not have a savings and enough money, the government push this modernization program, but they are not supporting the driver’s and operator. Most of them end up begging until now.

Tricycle drivers also affected by the pandemic, although some of them still have a job but the problem is there are only limited passengers, and their income is not enough. Other municipalities decided to have a coding scheme, that allowed every unit of tricycle to only operate three times a week and not every day.

In this whole year of despair, everyone should take care of each other. Mutual Aid and Social solidarity should be promoted and supporting each other is a way to survive this pandemic. We already know that in times of crisis, the government are incompetent, corrupt and they really do not care.  Good thing that there are still people out there helping us in some ways, 2 kilos of rice already good for two days. So, we distribute it to Buting-Sto.Rosario Pateros Tricycle Operator and Drivers Association, around 30 drivers benefited on this.

Mainstream media are composition of corporations collaborating in sustaining their good image, with the use of different program like gameshow or talent show and soap opera they design this to constantly manipulate, influence and fool people; with the help of commercials and advertisement they dictate consumerism and fanaticism. News that is repeatedly controlled by corporate media, manufacturing lies and somehow responsible on influencing and shaping your views in any issues. Mainstream media has a clear interest, for you to be dependent on any information that they show and remain obedient.

We need to be a bandit and take back the narrative of journalism and print media.

This last few weeks, despite of the restriction against the big gatherings and event because of the Covid-19 pandemic, we managed to organize an Archipelagic Zine Fair in our space that were participated by few individuals who are communally interested in creating a community that are fascinated in making independent print media or alternative media using Zines, a direct-action against mainstream media and fake news made in social media.

We know that making Zines is an step away from manipulative corporate media. We believed that making Zines are open for all, you can be a writer, artist, poets, illustrator, editor and publisher of your own work without someone telling you what to do. A do-it-yourself masterpiece countering standardization. You may hold and express your own narrative, concepts, stories and contents.

We organize this activity in order to share space, opportunity and platforms to all the the zinester/ zine maker coming from Luzon, Vizayas and Mindanao, the three biggest islands in Archipelago or the so-called Philippines. We had a zine exhibition and display the works made by Allan Balisi, Apol Sta. Maria, Diana Clara Mendoza, A.lien, Jose Olaguer, Photozinethesis, JW-2098, meepmoop969472, Tanex and Chung from Luzon, there are also zine made by Soika Vomiter and a collaborative zines by Food Not Bombs Bacolod which are coming from Vizayas and zines created by Kram Assault and Balong from Mindanao. This show is an attempt to promote zinester from different respective region and to create a network of independent print media warriors. We also set-up two typewriter to encourage participants to experience and exercise participatory and collaborative free style writing that we call “Dugtungan”. Aside from this, we gave a chance to Tanex to launch and present his 2nd issue of Distronka Sistema zine.

The event were participated by diverse individuals like poets, writer, tattoo artist, students, theater performer, tv director, tricycle driver, musician, office worker and government employee; sharing camaraderie and friendship. There is also a free food like pitchi-pitchi, cassava cake, banana with coconut, kamote fries and vegetarian salad with hot coffee promoting culture of sharing. An event recognizing freedom of the press and free expression while respecting each other and their work. Every zine maker share their Zines, the story behind it, their inspiration and views which are all coming from their heart and not dictated by someone else.

Alongside with this, we also had a Really Really Free Market or ” Libreng Palengke infront of our infoshop to share stuffs for free like shoes and clothes as part of our Mutual aid community action, stuffs which are donated by friends and love ones.

We are thankful for all the participants, organizer and to our community who help and join for this event, to gather regardless of the restriction. We will continue organize more event that is non-commercialized, autonomous, non-hierarchical and inclusive.

The legacy of anarchist ideas in the Philippines was first brought to the attention of a global audience by Benedict Anderson’s book Under Three Flags: Anarchism and the Anti-Colonial Imagination. Activist-author Bas Umali proves with stunning evidence that these ideas are still alive in a country that he would like to see replaced by an “archipelagic confederation.” Pangayaw refers to indigenous ways of maritime warfare. Bas Umali expertly ties traditional forms of communal life in the archipelago that makes up the Philippine state together with modern-day expressions of antiauthoritarian politics. Umali’s essays are deliciously provocative, not just for apologists of the current system, but also for radicals in the Global North who often enough forget that their political models do not necessarily fit the realities of post-colonial countries. In weaving together independent research and experiences from grassroots organizing, Umali sketches a way for resistance in the Global South that does not rely on Marxist determinism and Maoist people’s armies but the self-empowerment of the masses. His book addresses the crucial questions of liberation: who are the agents and what are the means? More than just a sterile case study, Pangayaw and Decolonizing Resistance is the start of a new paradigm and a must-read for those interested in decolonization, anarchism, and social movements of the global south.

On January 31,2021 we had an online book launching. It was live stream through facebook.

By: Safehouse Infoshop/Etniko Bandido Infoshop

Pandemics and natural calamities only highlight the inequalities in society. With four typhoons hitting the archipelago within less than a month, floodings, landslides, water and power outages across provinces made the pandemic even worse. The climate and health crises drown the poorest in the poor countries to the bottom of economic hierarchy, while state-backed corporations take the profit. To show support to these vulnerable sectors, direct-action groups organized themselves in different provinces and cities like Bicol and Cagayan, sending food and clothing , setting up solar techpacks, and even hitch-hiking to typhoon-stricken areas.

Solar techpak project initiated by 350.org assemble by volunteers like people from Etniko Bandido Infoshop. It was meant to be deploy in Catanduanes, one of the devastated region hit by super typhoon Rolly.

One of these initiatives was done in Barangay Nangka in Marikina city, an urban settlement along the dreaded Marikina. Almost a decade after typhoon Ondoy which claimed the lives of thousands, the same community faced the same onslaught despite disaster risk-reductions. One of the volunteers who live near the site recalls the flood which was knee-deep on the second level of their house.With the collaboration of different Food Not Bombs chapters (from Marikina, Cainta, and Lucena), infoshops, and individual volunteers, a food and clothing- drive was successfully accomplished on November 22, 2020.

Another initiative of food and water distribution made by Food Not Bombs Albay happened in November 14, 2020. There are 50 families or 200 individuals benefited on this. The goods composed of 5 kilos of rice, 4 canned goods and 2 liters of water gallon.

The action was organized in a horizontal, transparent manner, without any need for leaders. Hundreds of clothes were distributed. Two cauldrons of hot soup, two giant-woks of pansit, and yummy Laing and rice meal were distributed to a number of streets near the river. There were also other relief drives in the area. But according to a resident, none of these relief drives bothered to go to their community by the river. This community was what our drive consciously targeted to accommodate. Lunch and dinner were served with love. Fliers and zines were also distributed, demonstrating how similar horizontal and transparent mutual aid activities can be done by just about anyone, be it by small groups or individual, with or without money and permission from authorities.

For the success of the activity, we would like to thank first the community in Balubad, Baranggay Nangka for letting us into their community. We also thank all those who helped in asking for food donations from marketplaces, those who gathered clothing from friends, those who helped prepare and cook the food, friends who provided transportation, and those who contributed financially.

For mutual-aid and solidarity!