PEOPLE UNDER SIEGE: Repression, Crisis, and Resistance
Intensifying fascist attacks and severe economic blows directly resulting from US imperialist aggression and intervention pummeled the people in the first quarter of 2026.
On February 28, 2026, the US bombed Iran, prompting the latter to defend itself by launching military strikeson US bases across West Asia and Africa. Since then, the US-instigated conflict has unleashed an economic storm that sent the prices of fuel and other basic commodities on an upward spiral, causing unprecedented suffering to Filipinos.
Days after the first wave of US attacks against Iran, gasoline prices increased by up to 43% while diesel prices went up by about 50%, kerosene by 45% and liquefied petroleum gas by 30%. The inflation rate exceededmaximum government projections, driven by hikes in the prices of food, beverages, transport fares and housing. The inflationary spiral has impacted not only the poor but is expected to push even middle income families closer to the poverty line.
With many small businesses struggling and facing closure from significant declines in consumer spending andoverall economic distress, economic growth slowed down to a mere 2.8%, the lowest since the pandemic and a farcry from government projections of 5% to 6%. Agriculture and industry bore the brunt of the economic slowdown, registering -0.2% and -0.1% growth, respectively. With these drivers of employment in the doldrums, the loss of up to 357,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2026 comes as no surprise.
