Arroyo opponents arrested, newspaper raided in Philippines crackdown News
Arroyo opponents arrested, newspaper raided in Philippines crackdown

[JURIST] Police in Manila Saturday raided the offices of the Manila Daily Tribune [media website; Daily Tribune report] and detained several high-profile critics of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo [official website; BBC profile] of the Philippines a day after she declared a state of emergency [JURIST report] in order to stop an alleged coup against her government. Since her declaration, Arroyo has banned rallies in the country, but hundreds of opponents of her government nonetheless gathered at a Roman Catholic mass to challenge her, promising more protests until Arroyo is forced from office.

The current unrest stems most immediately from Arroyo's announcement [press release] Thursday that she intends to serve out her entire six-year term, despite allegations of election fraud that have marred her term thusfar. Although Arroyo was cleared of any fraud charges in November, political pressure on her to resign has continued. AP has more.