NEWS

Protesters clash with police; waste dumped at Liwasan

Sean A. Magbanua · Nov 15, 2026, 10:26 PM

SECURITY tightens around Manila as authorities close roads leading to Ayala Bridge and Recto Avenue toward Mendiola Peace Arch, restricting access to motorists and pedestrians ahead of planned protests during the 49th ASEAN Summit on Sunday. — Photograph by Zedrich Xylak Madrid FOR DAILY TRIBUNE

Protesters clashed with police at Liwasang Bonifacio on Sunday after Manila Police District (MPD) personnel blocked their planned march to the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC), where the 49th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit opened.

Tensions flared after a protest program led by the All Workers Unity alliance, with demonstrators pushing against police barricades along Padre Burgos Avenue. The confrontation involved shoving and heated exchanges, leaving two protesters injured and nearly 10 arrested, according to reports from the groups.

Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) chairperson Jerome Adonis said protesters agreed to return temporarily to Liwasang Bonifacio after negotiations with police officials.

“We will not allow our protests to be confined only to freedom parks. We want to reach the PICC,” Adonis said in a radio interview, insisting that the groups intended only to march and air their demands.

He warned that larger mobilizations in the coming days would make it harder for authorities to stop the protests against the visit of US President Donald Trump.

Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) president Renato Reyes Jr. also reported that a delegation from Southern Tagalog and Metro Manila had been surrounded by police in Sucat and prevented from leaving the Sucat People’s Park.

Reyes said BAYAN had received information that police would also stop vehicles carrying protesters from leaving the University of the Philippines on Monday.

The groups said the demonstrations sought to oppose Trump’s visit and the US-led Pax Silica initiative, while raising concerns over rising prices, economic pressures, human rights and the alleged displacement of Indigenous communities.

BAYAN reported that at least eight people were arrested. Among them was Tambisan sa Sining–Novaliches chairperson Peter John Charles Versoza, whom the group said was seized and beaten after intervening when police tried to arrest a senior citizen from transport group PISTON.

Human waste at Liwasang Bonifacio

The groups also alleged that Liwasang Bonifacio had been defaced with human waste and urine to discourage protesters from using it as an assembly point. They reported that tires of vehicles used by demonstrators had also been punctured.

Bayan chairman Teddy Casino condemned the alleged scattering of human waste around the freedom park, saying it was intended to discourage people from assembling there.

“This morning, they scattered human waste around Liwasang Bonifacio to prevent people from gathering here. That is why the place smells so bad,” Casino said.