Groups sound alarm over arrest of local artist-activist in Baguio

BAGUIO CITY — Barely two days after Christmas Day, cops served a warrant of arrest against a local artist and a labor transport organizer on the morning of 27 December 2025.

Mike Cabangon, who was in his home in Barangay Irisan, Baguio City, was visited by police who delivered said warrant. Cabangon, on February 15 this year, was charged with two counts of violation of the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012 (TFPSA).

Cabangon is the current regional coordinator of Kilusang Mayo Uno-Cordillera and also an organizer for the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuperat Opereytors Nationwide (PISTON) Metro-Baguio. He is also the vocalist-guitarist of the progressive band "Ebkas Waya" or Speak Free.

The Dap-ayan ti KULTURA iti Kordilyera (DKK or the Center of Culture in the Cordillera), where Ebkas Waya is a member artist group, expressed alarm and condemnation at the arrest of Cabangon. "The trumped-up charges against [him] are just a small part of the continuous and systematic repression against activists, cultural workers, and critics of the current administration. Meanwhile, big-time corrupt government officials are still free, plundering public funds while the people suffer. Artists and cultural workers, no matter how much state repression we will be facing, will continue to side with the people, fighting for social justice and peoples' rights and welfare," DKK stated.

The Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) condemned the continuous harassment against activists like Cabangon. The group stressed that instead of spending time with their family, they are forced to deal with such attacks. Cabangon, together with his lawyer and friends, went to the Regional Trial Court of Baguio City to post bail. Later, they proceeded to the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO) for the required processes.