Activist Amanda Echanis released after 5 years of detention

Women’s rights group Gabriela on Wednesday said peasant organizer Amanda Echanis has been released after five years in detention.

“After five years of unjust detention based on fabricated charges, her acquittal is a triumph of justice over the machinery of state terrorism,” Gabriela secretary-general Clarice Palce said in a statement released on Wednesday.

“Her release proves that when we speak out and organize, we can break the chains of injustice,” she added.

For Gabriela, Echanis’ release represents “the hundreds of political prisoners who remain behind bars for their commitment to genuine social change.”

In a separate statement, Karapatan Secretary General Tina Palabay said Echanis on Wednesday was acquitted of “trumped-up” charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

“This ruling confirms what we have long maintained: Amanda is innocent, and the charges against her were maliciously manufactured to punish her work among peasants and women,” Palabay said.

Echanis was arrested on December 2, 2020 in Baggao town. —VAL, GMA Integrated News